A driving factor for many homebuyers is choosing a home is a high-ranking school district in order to give their children the best opportunities possible. Children at Risk, a Texas nonprofit, recently assessed and ranked all public elementary schools in the state.

Children at Risk based rankings on a number of weighted criteria, including:

• Student Achievement Index – Student performance on STAAR reading and math tests
• Campus Performance Index – A school’s overall campus performance compared to other campuses statewide with similar levels of poverty. An adjustment was made to eliminate bias toward campuses with low percentages of economically disadvantaged students.
• Growth Index – Student-level improvement over time on standardized test scores in reading, English and math.
• College Readiness Index – High school graduation rates, SAT/ACT participation rate and scores, and AP/IB participation rate and scores.

Three Houston-area schools made it on the statewide top 10 list: Buckalew Elementary in Montgomery County, Commonwealth Elementary in Fort Bend County and Creekside Forest Elementary in Harris County.

See the Houston area’s top 10 and how they compare to other schools in the state.