Schools in Las Cruces · Las Cruces Public Schools

Las Cruces’s public schools beat 87% of New Mexico districts

The public schools Las Cruces’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, outperform 87% of New Mexico’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the top.

#11Best public schools of 47 #10Graduation rate94%beats similar-income towns

Reading proficiency

68%

▲ 10 pts vs NM 58%

2020–21

Math proficiency

42%

▲ 19 pts vs NM 23%

2020–21

Graduate on time

86%

▲ 9 pts vs NM 77%

class of 2020

Spent per student

$16.9K

▼ 4% vs NM $17.7K

FY2024

Students per teacher

15.8

NM 13.0

Schools

20,202 students

In brief

Las Cruces’s schools, in brief

Families have options beyond the district

41 schools serve Las Cruces, including 6 public charter schools and 5 private schools. Charters are free and open by application, so district results aren’t the only choice. Every school ↓

Math is the standout

Reading proficiency is 68%, 10 points above the state. Math is 42%, 19 points above the state. Test scores ↓

Which school depends on your street

With 17 elementary, six middle and four high schools, the school a child attends depends on your address. See the path ↓

This summary is written from the data on this page. Test scores are from 2020–21, a pandemic year, so treat small gaps with caution.

The School Grade

How Las Cruces compares

A− Test scoresA Graduation

New Mexico school districts we grade (93)Better than 87%

Lower resultsHigher results

New Mexico towns with similar household incomes (134)Better than 94%

Good confidence. Built on 346 tested students and a graduating class of 1,866; ordinary year-to-year swings are unlikely to change the grade.

How the School Grade works

Results, not inputs. Math and reading proficiency on New Mexico’s state tests against the state average, plus the four-year graduation rate. Spending and class size are shown but don’t count. Tests: 2020–21; graduation: class of 2020.
The whole path. A town’s grade follows its kids through every district that serves it, weighted by students tested. Tests count 60%, graduation 40%.
Graded within the state. Each state writes its own tests, so districts are compared with the rest of New Mexico only. A+ is the top 5%, A the next 10%, A− the next 10%, the B range the next 30%, the C range the next 30%, D the rest.
What a grade can’t tell you. Test results track family income, so we also compare towns with similar incomes. Visit, ask other parents, and read neighbor reviews. It’s our own summary of U.S. Department of Education data, not an official rating.

Where will my kid go?

Pick a grade. These are the public schools that serve Las Cruces.

17 schools teach K in Las Cruces’s district. Which one depends on your address: Monte Vista Elementary, Highland Elementary, Sonoma Elementary and Desert Hills Elementary and more.

The path, start to finish

PK–517 elementary schoolsDepends on your address

6–86 middle schoolsDepends on your address

9–124 high schoolsDepends on your address

The district

Each district’s own page has its spending, test scores, enrollment and every school.

Las Cruces Public SchoolsGrades PK–12 · 39 schools · 22,670 students

$16,907NM $17,681

Test scores · 2020–21

Well above the state in reading

Reading68%

State average 58.4%

Math42%

State average 23.4%

Every school in Las Cruces

41 schools. Grades are based on state tests and graduation. Any other ratings are made by neighbors.

Elementary