The top reported proficiency rate is 89% in English language arts. The lowest is 83% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Laurel Mountain El
Laurel Mountain Elementary sits in northwest Austin along DK Ranch Road, part of Round Rock ISD despite its Austin address. It serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and enrolls a large number of students for an elementary school, distributed fairly evenly across grade levels.
The academic results on the Texas STAAR assessment are genuinely strong. Across tested grades in reading and language arts, the school's proficiency rates run in the high eighties to ninety percent range, consistent from third grade through fifth. Math follows a similar pattern, with third and fifth grade scoring in the high eighties and fourth grade somewhat lower but still solidly above average. Fifth-grade science lands in the low eighties. When you pull back to the aggregate STAAR performance levels, the picture sharpens further: nearly all tested students reach the "approaches" threshold, a strong majority meet grade level, and a substantial share reach the "masters" level, the state's highest performance band. Placed against other districts in Travis County, Laurel Mountain's overall proficiency index lands in the top quartile, well above the county midpoint.
The student body is notably diverse by race and ethnicity. Asian students make up close to half the enrollment, white students roughly a quarter, Hispanic students about one in ten, and multiracial students add another meaningful share. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals is quite low relative to Texas norms, which gives some context for the strong test scores. Data on English learners and students with IEPs was not reported in what we received, so parents of children with those needs may want to ask the school directly about services and staffing.
Housing in this part of northwest Austin sits well above both the Texas and national median home value. Values have dipped modestly year over year, a trend visible across much of the Austin market as the region absorbs the apartment construction surge of recent years. Rents have also eased slightly. For buyers, estimated monthly mortgage costs are substantial, reflecting prices that imply a high price-to-income ratio by national standards. Renters fare comparatively better, with rent-to-income ratios that, while not cheap, are less extreme than ownership costs.
Austin itself is one of the fastest-growing large metros in the country, anchored by state government, the University of Texas, and a dense technology and semiconductor sector including major campuses from Apple, Samsung, Tesla, Oracle, and others. Dell is headquartered in nearby Round Rock. The everyday texture of Austin varies enormously by neighborhood. Northwest Austin, where Laurel Mountain sits, is a suburban, car-oriented part of the city, far from the walkable corridors of downtown, South Congress, or East Austin.
At the district level, Round Rock ISD voters approved most of a major bond package in late 2024, directing funds toward aging infrastructure repairs, technology, fine arts, and a new Career and Technical Education facility. The stadium proposition did not pass. The district has also adopted the state's Bluebonnet Learning math curriculum at the elementary level but, as of early 2025, had not adopted the reading and language arts portion of that curriculum, which drew attention for including Bible- and Christianity-based content. Parents who have opinions about curriculum materials may want to follow how that decision develops. Publicly reported coverage also notes that the district paused proposed bus route cuts in spring 2026 after parent pushback, committing to maintain current service for the coming school year while forming a parent advisory committee on transportation. The property tax rate has declined modestly in recent budget cycles, which matters to homeowners in a market where assessed values run high.
No program-specific offerings, chronic absenteeism data, or graduation rate data were available for Laurel Mountain, the last of which does not apply here since the school ends at fifth grade.
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