North Coastal News

There were 65 Black students enrolled in Refugio County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 9.7% less than the previous year, according to the Texas Education Agency.

Data showed that Refugio County welcomed 1,225 students during the 2022-23 school year. Among them, Black students comprised 5.3% of the student body to be the third most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the seven schools in Refugio County, only Refugio Elementary School and Refugio High School enrolled any Black students, welcoming 20 students each in the 2022-23 school year.

Education in Texas is often a hot button issue, especially as test scores lag behind other states.

“The problems commonly cited are flaws in the school financing system, relatively low teacher salary, poor test performance by students…dropouts from traditional schools in favor of charter schools…gun violence, and mental health issues," claimed the Texas Almanac.

School name	% of Black students enrolment	Total enrollment
Refugio Elementary School	6.7	299
Woodsboro High School	4.1	221
Refugio High School	9.3	216
Woodsboro Elementary School	2.4	206
Refugio Junior High School	6.5	139
Austwell-Tivoli Elementary School	1.3	78
Austwell-Tivoli High School	1.5	66