Best Public Schools in Zip Code 87711

The 87711 zip code area is home to two small schools - Rita A. Marquez Elementary and Anton Chico Middle, both part of the Santa Rosa Consolidated Schools district. While the schools serve similar demographics, with a majority Hispanic student population and 100% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, their academic performance profiles differ significantly.

Anton Chico Middle stands out as the top performer, consistently ranking among the top 55 middle schools in New Mexico and earning a 4-out-of-5-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's language arts proficiency rate of 52% is well above the state average of 38%, and its exceptional 7:1 student-teacher ratio suggests strong individualized attention for students. In contrast, Rita A. Marquez Elementary has a more mixed performance, ranking 279 out of 435 elementary schools and earning a 2-star rating, with proficiency rates below the state averages in both language arts (37%) and math (13%).

The significant disparity in academic performance between the two schools, despite serving similar student populations, suggests that factors beyond just demographics, such as instructional quality and school leadership, may be driving the differences. Additionally, the relatively small enrollments of both schools (61 and 34 students, respectively) may indicate challenges in maintaining sustainable school operations and programming, which could be an area of concern for the district. Nonetheless, the close proximity and shared demographics of the schools present opportunities for collaboration and the sharing of best practices that could benefit all students in the 87711 area.