The top reported proficiency rate is 28% in English language arts. The lowest is 15% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Post Middle
Post Middle serves the small West Texas town of Post and surrounding Garza County, where population has declined steadily over decades and the local economy centers on government, agriculture, and oilfield services. The school sits within a compact community of modest means: roughly two-thirds of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, and home values in the area run substantially below state and national medians. This is a small school by any measure, with an enrollment split evenly across three grade levels.
Academically, Post Middle is showing weak performance across most measured subjects. In mathematics, proficiency ranges from low in sixth grade to very low by eighth grade, with less than a quarter of students testing at proficient levels or above in any year. English language arts performance is similarly constrained across the lower grades, though eighth-grade results in ELA stand apart, with a notably higher proportion of students meeting or exceeding the standard. Science and social studies data are available only for eighth grade; both show proficiency rates well below state benchmarks. When measured across all subjects at all performance tiers, the school shows that a majority of students are approaching proficiency (reaching the lowest level) rather than meeting or mastering content. The gap is steepest in mathematics, where only a small share reach the "meets" threshold and even fewer achieve mastery. This profile suggests students are landing at the low end of the proficiency spectrum, rather than falling completely below.
The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a white plurality as the second-largest group and other races represented in very small numbers. Most students live in or near Post itself, in a noncommuter town where families are rooted and schools are embedded in the community rather than isolated on a campus.
The school's test data reflects a year in isolation; the data provided does not cover prior years, so trends cannot be assessed. Parents considering Post Middle would do well to speak directly with school leadership about the factors behind these results—whether staffing, turnover, curriculum changes, or resource constraints play a role—and what remediation and support structures are in place for students who are not yet proficient. A parent may also want to ask whether the school offers any accelerated or enrichment pathways to help students move beyond the "approaching" tier. Given the size and rural setting of the school, opportunities for specialized programs or electives may be limited compared to larger districts, but that is a feature of the community and the district's scale, not a gap unique to this school.
Housing in Post is affordable, with home values and rents well below statewide medians, consistent with a stable small town where property ownership is within reach for families with modest incomes. However, the broader economic context is one of long-term contraction rather than growth; the town and county have experienced significant population loss over recent decades, and employment outside of government, agriculture, and oilfield work is limited. A family choosing Post Middle is choosing a deeply rooted small-town school serving a community defined by stability, affordability, and modest academic outcomes, not by rapid growth or robust academic performance.
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