Penelope School, Penelope TX - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Penelope School

Penelope School is a small PK-12 school serving a rural, low-density Hill County town. Enrollment is around a few hundred students across all thirteen grades, with a population balance: roughly half the students come from families of moderate means, and the racial composition leans white, with smaller Hispanic and Black populations. The school sits on the main avenue of the town itself, serving as a single campus that anchors community life rather than sitting on a distant campus.

State test results show uneven performance. In English language arts across grades three through eight, students cluster around the middle: about half of tested students meet or exceed proficiency. Math is more variable. Lower elementary grades three and four sit well below proficiency, but grade five bounces up to majority proficiency, then dips in grade six before recovering in grades seven and eight, where students hit solid proficiency. Science and social studies are tested only at specific grades; grade five science proficiency is notably weak, while grade eight science and social studies sit at moderate levels. This grade-by-grade volatility suggests inconsistency in preparation or perhaps shifting student cohort needs rather than steady improvement across the pipeline.

Compared to other districts in Hill County, Penelope School ranks in the top quartile on overall proficiency index, a meaningful positioning that means the school is performing above the county median, even if many individual grades are not yet where they need to be.

A graduation rate, chronic absenteeism data, and enrollment in special education or English learner services were not available; these are not uncommon gaps for small districts and alternative settings, though the specific reasons here are not named in the data.

The district and town are in transition. In May 2024 voters approved a bond measure for a new career and technical education facility with metal and woodworking shops, plus athletic and physical education space, alongside parking and infrastructure upgrades. The district framed this as removing barriers for students (no longer crossing a street to access classes) and as offsetting local property tax burden through solar project payments. If built, the CTE addition would expand vocational pathway options for a small school that has not yet documented deep career or dual-credit program depth. For families considering this school, that construction represents a near-term material change in what the building can offer, particularly for students interested in hands-on trades.

The town itself is very small and historically rooted in agricultural commerce; today it has few private employers, and the school district is among the larger institutional employers. Housing values are modest and below state benchmark. Population has been flat for decades. The school is the civic anchor of the town, and for families willing to embrace a rural, tight-knit setting where school life is central, Penelope offers that identity clearly. For families seeking breadth of course offerings, dense peer networks, or fast-moving academic acceleration, the small size works in the opposite direction.

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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 326%

School 26% · District 26%

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 425%

School 25% · District 25%

▼ 16 pts below state median

Grade 556%

School 56% · District 56%

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 30 pts above county median

Grade 629%

School 29% · District 29%

▼ 5 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 43%

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 876%

School 76% · District 76%

▲ 34 pts above state median · ▲ 34 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 347%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 61%

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 647%

School 47% · District 47%

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 757%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 871%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Science

Grade 56%

School 6% · District 6%

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 853%

School 53% · District 53%

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 27 pts above county median

This schoolPENELOPE 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-income57%Higher-income42%15 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income45%Higher-income86%41 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income30%Higher-income71%41 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income56%Higher-income88%32 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income43%Higher-income17%26 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income45%Higher-income71%26 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income10%Higher-income57%47 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income67%Higher-income88%21 pp gap