Forest Country News

There were 19 American Indian students enrolled in Jasper County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 46.2% more than the previous year, according to the Texas Education Agency.

Data showed that Jasper County welcomed 5,649 students during the 2022-23 school year. Among them, American Indian students comprised 0.3% of the student body to be the second least represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 14 schools in Jasper County, only Buna Elementary School and Kirbyville Junior High School enrolled any American Indian students, welcoming four 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 American Indian students enrolment	Total enrollment
Kirbyville Elementary School	0.1	722
Buna Elementary School	0.6	702
Jean C. Few Primary School	0.4	699
Jasper High School	0.1	681
Jasper Junior High School	0.4	493
Buna High School	0.7	427
Kirbyville High School	0	417
Kirbyville Junior High School	1.1	363
Buna Junior High School	0	348
Parnell Elementary School	0	338
Evadale Elementary School	0.6	176
Evadale High School	0	115
Quest Collegiate Academy - Jasper	0	88
Evadale Junior High School	0	80