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University of Texas at Brownsville
University of Texas–Pan American
Texas State Technical College
South Texas College
The Marine Military Academy
| The foundation of any region’s economic prospects is laid in the classroom. The Rio Grande Valley's young population is growing faster than the rest of the state. The South Texas region has a number of positive indicators for future economic prosperity, and ranks above the statewide average on several education benchmarks. South Texas shows an enormous potential for producing a large educated work force, with a large number of school- aged children and school districts showing improvement. The region has a higher share of school districts ranked Academically Acceptable than in the state as a whole, and it's higher education institutions are increasing enrollment and the number of degrees they award. Public Education The South Texas region is home to 11.2 percent of Texas’ 4.7 million public elementary and secondary students. It has 102 public and nine charter school districts with 844 campuses. These schools provide early childhood through Grade 12 education for more than 500,000 students. The region’s number of students has increased by 14.6 percent since the 2001-02 school year, outpacing the statewide increase of 12.7 percent over the same period and representing a net gain of almost 70,000 students. In 2007-08, the region’s largest independent school district (ISD) by enrollment was Brownsville ISD in Cameron County, with nearly 50,000 students. The smallest district with students through 12th grade was Big Springs Charter in Real County, with 115 students. The region’s public school student population reflects an increasing Hispanic population share that is now nearly twice as large as the state average, at 91 percent versus 47.2 percent. source: www.window.state.tx.us |