New Summerfield School, New Summerfield TX

Original Research by School Decision on New Summerfield School

New Summerfield School is the single campus of New Summerfield ISD, a small rural district sitting along US Route 79 in northeastern Cherokee County, Texas. The school serves every grade from pre-kindergarten through twelfth, which means a child who enrolls in pre-K here will share a campus, a cafeteria, and hallways with seniors for the next fourteen years. That consolidation is simply the reality of a very small town, and it shapes the peer environment in ways worth thinking about before enrolling.

The town itself is compact and car-dependent. Agriculture, including greenhouse operations, Christmas tree farms, and ranching, anchors the local economy alongside construction and manufacturing, according to publicly reported sources. Jacksonville, the largest city in Cherokee County, sits about ten miles west along US 79 and draws some residents for work. Civic life in New Summerfield is modest: a fire station, post office, churches, and the school itself are the recognizable anchors. Population grew through the late twentieth century but has leveled off in recent decades, and the housing stock shows little evidence of new residential development.

One structural change families should weigh carefully: the district shifted to a four-day school week beginning in the 2022-23 school year, publicly reported as a sustained change. Students are on campus Monday through Thursday, with the school day running from morning until late afternoon. Some Fridays are designated for remediation and tutorials, particularly for students who are struggling academically, but most Fridays are off. The district framed the change as a tool for recruiting and keeping teachers, and it has continued the model for several years. The practical effect for families is a standing Friday childcare question, especially for younger children.

On academic performance, the STAAR results for the most recent school year show a mixed picture across grades and subjects. ELA proficiency in third grade is a genuine strength, reaching well above average for the school's tested cohorts. Sixth-grade math and ELA also show solid performance. The areas that deserve a closer look are fifth- and eighth-grade math, fifth- and eighth-grade science, seventh- and eighth-grade ELA, and eighth-grade social studies, where proficiency rates fall notably below what the stronger grades show. Science results at both tested grade levels are low, and eighth-grade social studies is the weakest result in the data. The gap between the school's "approaches grade level" rate, which is relatively broad, and the share reaching the higher "masters" threshold is wide across all subjects, meaning that while most tested students clear a minimum bar, very few reach the top performance level. A parent whose student is in upper elementary or middle school grades may want to ask the school directly about supports in math and science.

Relative to districts in Cherokee County, the school's overall proficiency index sits above the midpoint among the six districts in the county. That context is useful but limited, since the county is itself a rural area without high-performing suburban comparison points nearby.

The enrollment is substantial for a school of this grade span in a rural community this size. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Hispanic. English learner counts were not available in the data provided.

No AP, dual-credit, or career and technical education program data was available for this school. Graduation rate data was also not reported in the data provided, which is a gap worth following up on directly with the school for any family with a student in high school.

The school has no charter or magnet designation and is a standard public campus. It is the only option within the district, so families choosing New Summerfield ISD are choosing this campus.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=80%Cohort of 18 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

1,779 schools plotted. 59 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 355%

School 55% · District 55%

▲ 15 pts above state median

Grade 466%

School 66% · district not reported

▲ 25 pts above state median

Grade 523%

School 23% · District 23%

▼ 18 pts below state median

Grade 664%

School 64% · District 64%

▲ 30 pts above state median

Grade 754%

School 54% · District 54%

▲ 27 pts above state median

Grade 830%

School 30% · District 30%

▼ 12 pts below state median

English language arts

Grade 377%

School 77% · District 77%

▲ 31 pts above state median

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 59%

▲ 5 pts above state median

Grade 672%

School 72% · District 72%

▲ 20 pts above state median

Grade 746%

School 46% · District 46%

▼ 3 pts below state median

Grade 835%

School 35% · District 35%

▼ 20 pts below state median

Science

Grade 515%

School 15% · District 15%

▼ 8 pts below state median

Grade 821%

School 21% · District 21%

▼ 21 pts below state median

Social studies

Grade 818%

School 18% · District 18%

▼ 6 pts below state median

This schoolNEW SUMMERFIELD ISD, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income74%Higher-income88%14 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income53%Higher-income86%33 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income44%Higher-income50%6 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income34%Higher-income40%6 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income43%Higher-income88%45 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income13%Higher-income71%58 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income50%Higher-income70%20 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income36%Higher-income0%36 pp gap