District · Traditional
Merkel ISD
Taylor County · Region 14: Abilene · 1,127 students
Merkel ISD is rated C by TEA, scoring 77 out of 100 for 2025-26 — below the 83.6 average of the 298 districts serving a similar share of economically disadvantaged students, and below the statewide average of 81.7. It is up 3 points since 2021-22 — both years scored under TEA's current rules, since TEA rewrote them in 2023; under the rules in force back then it scored 87.
Ranks 729th of 1,019 Texas districts (tied with 47 others), and 30th of 42 in Region 14: Abilene (tied with 1 other).
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5 years of ratings
2021-22 is shown under the refreshed methodology TEA adopted in 2023, so it is comparable with later years. Under the original scoring it was rated B with 87 that year.
| Year | Rating | Score | Similar | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | C | 77 | 83.6 | 81.7 |
| 2024-25 | C | 78 | 82.8 | 80.3 |
| 2023-24 | C | 75 | 81.0 | 78.7 |
| 2022-23 | C | 78 | 81.6 | 79.2 |
| 2021-22 | C | 74 | 82.4 | 80.6 |
How this district's change over time is ranked
TEA publishes most measures for one year only, so a change ranking exists just where the same figure is published across years — the overall score, the five score domains, and per-student spending. This page does not yet state where Merkel ISD itself places on these lists, only that the lists exist; open one to find this district's own row.
Texas districts
Region 14: Abilene
Where the score comes from
Texas builds the overall rating from the better of Student Achievement and School Progress, weighted 70%, plus Closing the Gaps at 30%. School Progress is itself the better of Academic Growth and Relative Performance. The 60, 70, 80 and 90 rules mark the letter-grade thresholds.
- Merkel ISD
- Similar student population (298)
- Region 14: Abilene (42)
| Domain | Score | Grade | Points to next grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student Achievement | 79 | C | 1 |
| School Progress | 73 | C | 7 |
| Closing the Gaps | 71 | C | 9 |
| Academic Growth | 73 | C | 7 |
| Relative Performance | 72 | C | 8 |
Closest to moving up: Student Achievement, 1 point below B in that domain — the nearest of the measures that count toward the overall rating.
TEA does not add the domains up. The overall score is the better of Student Achievement and School Progress at 70%, plus Closing the Gaps at 30%. For this district that better measure is Student Achievement (79), so School Progress (73) is published above but does not enter the overall score at all — gaining points there changes nothing until it passes 79.
Student outcomes
STAAR performance
- Approaches grade level
- Meets grade level
- Masters grade level
- Tick: Similar student population (298)
Percentage of tests at or above each level. Masters is a subset of Meets, which is a subset of Approaches. The tick on each bar marks the average for Similar student population (298 districts) — a comparison TEA does not publish.
Graduation
- Four-Year
- 95.8%−0.4 pts vs similar
- Five-Year
- 98.9%+2.3 pts vs similar
- Six-Year
- 97.6%+1.1 pts vs similar
- Dropout Rate
- 0.3%±0.0 pts vs similar
College, career and military readiness
| Criterion | This district | similar | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total credit for CCMR criteria | 97.0% | 89.5% | +7.5 |
| Scored at or above the college ready standard on SAT, ACT, TSIA, or earned credit for a college prep course | 73.4% | 58.4% | +15.0 |
| Scored at or above the college ready standard on SAT, ACT, TSIA | 31.3% | 31.3% | +0.0 |
| Met criterion score on AP/IB exam(s) | 0.0% | 8.5% | −8.5 |
| Earned college credit for a dual credit course | 45.3% | 37.8% | +7.5 |
| Earned an industry-based certification | 32.8% | 41.4% | −8.6 |
| Earned a level I or level II certificate | 0.0% | 1.5% | −1.5 |
| Earned an associate degree | 0.0% | 2.5% | −2.5 |
| Completed an OnRamps course and qualified for college credit | 4.7% | 4.6% | +0.1 |
| Graduated with completed individualized education program (IEP) and workforce readiness | 9.4% | 2.9% | +6.5 |
| Graduated under an advanced diploma plan and identified as a current special education student | 15.6% | 7.8% | +7.8 |
| Enlisted in the U.S. Armed Forces | 1.6% | 3.3% | −1.7 |
Who this district serves
Placed after the results deliberately: this is context for reading them, not an explanation of them.
- Students
- 1,127
- Economically disadvantaged
- 44.7%−1.3 pts vs similar
- English learners
- 2.9%−5.1 pts vs similar
- Special education
- 28.0%+10.2 pts vs similar
- Attendance
- 94.7%−0.3 pts vs similar
- Chronically absent
- 16.7%+4.5 pts vs similar
Student demographics
- African American 1.5%
- Hispanic 25.6%
- White 67.5%
- American Indian 1%
- Asian 0.1%
- Two or More Races 4.3%
Spending per student
Compared against TEA's own peer group, which controls for size and student population, and against the state.
- Merkel ISD
- TEA peer group
- Texas average
Spends $4,675 less per student than its peer group, and $3,886 less than the state average.
Teachers
- Average salary
- $69,440+$4,213 vs similar
- Teachers
- 88
- Students per staff member
- 12.8
Teaching experience
- Beginning 4.3%
- 1 to 5 years 24.8%
- 6 to 10 years 18.7%
- 11 to 20 years 30.1%
- 21 to 30 years 15.3%
- Over 30 years 6.9%
Where this district ranks best
Out of 123 rankings computed across every published metric and every comparison group, these are the placements that stand out. Press Copy for a citable sentence.
-
2of 42
Completed an OnRamps course and qualified for college credit
Region 14: Abilene · of the 42 that report this measure
-
4of 42
Graduated with completed individualized education program (IEP) and workforce readiness
Region 14: Abilene · of the 42 that report this measure
-
4of 42
Average teacher salary
Region 14: Abilene · of the 42 that report this measure
-
10of 42
Graduated under an advanced diploma plan and identified as a current special education student
Region 14: Abilene · of the 42 that report this measure
-
10of 42
Met criterion score on AP/IB exam(s)
Region 14: Abilene · of the 42 that report this measure · tied with 32
These are selected high placements, not a summary. Every figure above this section is the full picture, including where this district ranks poorly. Each statement below states its cohort and its denominator so it can be checked — a rank without an n is a boast, not a fact. Ties are shown because a shared ceiling is not a sole first place. Every ranking this site publishes, including the ones no district would put in a press release.
3 schools in this district
| School | Type | Rating | Score | Students |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merkel HS | High School | A | 93 | 298 |
| Merkel MS | Middle / Jr. High | C | 74 | 244 |
| Merkel Elem | Elementary | D | 62 | 585 |
Where this comes from
Every figure on this page comes from data the Texas Education Agency publishes at txschools.gov, fetched 15 August 2026 and archived with a checksum so each number stays traceable to the bytes TEA served.