Douglass Elementary has pulled off a big jump, climbing from a D last year to a B in the state's latest A-F accountability ratings. The south-central El Paso campus is now officially on the upswing, even as the numbers still point to serious trouble in core achievement and the growing strain of taking in students from closed neighborhood schools.
State data confirm the jump
According to the Texas Tribune school database, Douglass is now a B campus for 2024-25. The Texas Education Agency has also posted the 2025 accountability lists and a statewide summary that reflect the district-level shift in Douglass's overall letter grade.
District consolidation put pressure on neighborhood schools
El Paso ISD's Destination District Redesign calls for closing multiple neighborhood elementary campuses and reallocating seats and staff to schools left standing, including moving students from Rusk and Zavala in Phase I. The district's plan lays out reassignments, new boundary maps, and projected cost savings designed to concentrate what it describes as "high-quality seats" at remaining campuses, according to El Paso ISD.
Gains mask persistent achievement gaps
Local reporting by El Paso Matters notes that Douglass boosted its overall rating but still stands out inside the district for the wrong reasons. The campus has reportedly earned an F in the Student Achievement domain for three consecutive years, even as its overall score climbed. That reporting also notes Douglass serves roughly 440 students, about 96% are economically disadvantaged, and the campus absorbed roughly 40 students from Zavala after that school closed, along with about 15 staff members who transferred to Douglass.
What the mixed scores mean
The A-F system weights three domains: Student Achievement, School Progress, and Closing the Gaps. That means an overall B can still sit on top of very weak results in one of those areas, according to the Texas Education Agency. It also helps explain how Douglass's overall grade could jump while advocates continue to call for more classroom-level support.
Local reaction and next steps
For Douglass, the new B is both a victory lap and a warning label. It shows how fast an accountability label can flip while deep learning gaps hang around, community members told El Paso Matters. District leaders say the redesign and targeted programming are supposed to turn those paper gains into lasting improvement in classrooms. The test now is whether Douglass can translate its better grade into consistent student achievement.
