The top reported proficiency rate is 59% in English language arts. The lowest is 28% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Santa Maria El
Santa Maria Elementary is a small, nearly all-Hispanic public school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in Laredo. The enrollment is modest, with each grade level holding roughly sixty to eighty-five students. The student body is almost entirely Hispanic, and virtually all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing this school in one of the district's most economically constrained settings.
The school's recent test results show uneven performance across subjects and grades. In English Language Arts, third graders scored near the midpoint of proficiency, while fourth and fifth graders performed better, with a majority meeting or exceeding standards. In math, the picture is mixed: third graders struggled markedly, with only a quarter meeting proficiency, though fourth and fifth graders improved substantially. Science results are notably weak, with fewer than a third of fifth graders proficient. Across all tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile relative to other district schools in Webb County, though this reflects the broader context of the county rather than a strong absolute position. A parent may want to look into how the school is addressing the particularly low results in third-grade math and fifth-grade science, and what support structures exist for students entering elementary.
Santa Maria feeds into the broader Laredo ISD system, which is experiencing sustained enrollment decline that the district projects will continue. Because Texas school funding follows attendance, this shrinking enrollment directly reduces revenue and raises the prospect of future budget constraints, program reductions, or consolidation. The district has publicized its specialty high school system—seven schools offering twenty-nine programs of study in career and college-focused pathways—but those lie years ahead for a Santa Maria student. For families considering this school now, the enrollment pressure at the district level is a factor worth understanding, especially if they plan to remain in Laredo through high school.
The school's immediate neighborhood in Laredo is part of a predominantly Hispanic border city where daily life centers on family-oriented residential areas, though much of the wider city is automobile-dependent. Housing costs in the area are modest by national standards. Laredo's economy is anchored in logistics and trade tied to the border, and the city continues to expand northward and eastward with new home communities.
Santa Maria offers a straightforward elementary pathway—prekindergarten through fifth grade in a regular public school—without specialized programs or magnet features. It is the kind of neighborhood school that serves its local community directly, with nearly universal economic need among its students.
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