Houston ISD Statistics 2026: Enrollment, Schools & Charts
Houston Independent School District reported 168,812 students in the Texas Performance Reporting System Enrollment measure for 2025–26. The same reporting system lists 167,793 students under Membership, a separate TEA measure with different inclusion rules.
Enrollment was 7,915 lower than in 2024–25 and 41,249 lower than in 2019–20. TEA's 2026 district summary counts 272 schools in Houston ISD.
Houston ISD Enrollment and School Statistics
The student totals use TEA reporting measures. Enrollment and Membership are kept separate because their definitions are not identical.
Enrollment Movement Since 2019–20
The comparable TEA Enrollment series declined in every year shown after 2019–20.
Houston ISD Enrollment Trend
TEA TPRS Enrollment, 2019–20 through 2025–26
Houston ISD's share of Texas public-school enrollment moved from 3.82% in 2019–20 to 3.09% in 2025–26.
Recent enrollment movement
- The largest one-year decline in the series occurred in 2020–21, when enrollment fell by 13,118 students.
- After the 1.2% decline in 2021–22, the annual rate widened to 2.4%, 3.1%, 4.0%, and 4.5% across the next four reporting years.
Houston ISD Enrollment by School Year
Texas enrollment is included to place the district trend on the same statewide reporting basis.
| School Year | HISD Enrollment | Annual Change | Annual Rate | Texas Enrollment | HISD Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | 210,061 | — | — | 5,493,940 | 3.82% |
| 2020–21 | 196,943 | −13,118 | −6.2% | 5,371,586 | 3.67% |
| 2021–22 | 194,607 | −2,336 | −1.2% | 5,427,370 | 3.59% |
| 2022–23 | 189,934 | −4,673 | −2.4% | 5,518,432 | 3.44% |
| 2023–24 | 184,109 | −5,825 | −3.1% | 5,531,236 | 3.33% |
| 2024–25 | 176,727 | −7,382 | −4.0% | 5,544,255 | 3.19% |
| 2025–26 | 168,812 | −7,915 | −4.5% | 5,467,642 | 3.09% |
Enrollment by Grade in 2025–26
Grade counts use the 168,812-student TPRS Enrollment measure rather than Membership.
Houston ISD Students by Grade
Enrollment count from early childhood education through Grade 12
Grade 4 reported the largest grade-level count at 13,571 students. Early childhood education is shown separately from Pre-K.
| Grade | Students | HISD Share | Texas Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early Childhood Education | 340 | 0.2% | 0.5% |
| Pre-K | 12,053 | 7.1% | 4.6% |
| Kindergarten | 11,294 | 6.7% | 6.4% |
| Grade 1 | 12,015 | 7.1% | 6.8% |
| Grade 2 | 12,267 | 7.3% | 6.9% |
| Grade 3 | 12,877 | 7.6% | 7.1% |
| Grade 4 | 13,571 | 8.0% | 7.4% |
| Grade 5 | 13,160 | 7.8% | 7.4% |
| Grade 6 | 10,389 | 6.2% | 7.4% |
| Grade 7 | 10,840 | 6.4% | 7.4% |
| Grade 8 | 10,977 | 6.5% | 7.5% |
| Grade 9 | 13,051 | 7.7% | 8.1% |
| Grade 10 | 12,480 | 7.4% | 7.8% |
| Grade 11 | 12,403 | 7.3% | 7.5% |
| Grade 12 | 11,095 | 6.6% | 7.2% |
Grade distribution compared with Texas
- Pre-K accounts for 7.1% of Houston ISD enrollment versus 4.6% statewide.
- Grades 6, 7, and 8 each represent a smaller share of Houston ISD enrollment than of statewide enrollment.
Student Race and Ethnicity
The categories sum to the district's 2025–26 TPRS Enrollment total. Percentages are rounded to one decimal place.
Race and Ethnicity Share of Enrollment
Houston ISD student enrollment, 2025–26
Hispanic students account for 60.5% of enrollment, followed by African American students at 21.0%.
| Race/Ethnicity | Students | HISD Share | Texas Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| African American | 35,461 | 21.0% | 12.9% |
| Hispanic | 102,136 | 60.5% | 53.1% |
| White | 18,092 | 10.7% | 24.3% |
| American Indian | 322 | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Asian | 8,881 | 5.3% | 5.8% |
| Pacific Islander | 141 | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or More Races | 3,779 | 2.2% | 3.4% |
Student Groups Compared With Texas
These indicators use the 167,793-student TPRS Membership base. A student may appear in more than one program or population category.
Houston ISD and Texas Student Group Shares
Membership-based percentages, 2025–26
Program and student-group categories overlap. Their percentages cannot be added to produce a combined student share.
| Student Group | HISD Students | HISD Share | Texas Share | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economically Disadvantaged | 129,572 | 77.2% | 59.9% | +17.3 pts |
| Emergent Bilingual | 62,008 | 37.0% | 23.6% | +13.4 pts |
| At-Risk | 121,093 | 72.2% | 54.6% | +17.6 pts |
| Title I | 150,603 | 89.8% | 66.2% | +23.6 pts |
| Gifted & Talented | 23,110 | 13.8% | 9.0% | +4.8 pts |
| Special Education | 21,012 | 12.5% | 16.5% | −4.0 pts |
Houston ISD's student-group profile
- The largest Houston ISD–Texas percentage-point difference shown is for Title I: 89.8% versus 66.2%.
- Economically disadvantaged, emergent bilingual, at-risk, Title I, and gifted and talented shares are above the statewide percentages shown. Special education is 4.0 percentage points below the statewide share.
Houston ISD School Structure
TEA's 2026 district summary reports 272 schools and classifies them into four school-type groups.
Schools by Type
TEA 2025–26 reporting set
Elementary schools account for about two-thirds of the TEA school total.
2026 Campus Rating Distribution
TEA accountability ratings across the 272-school reporting set
Seven schools are listed as Not Rated and are kept outside the A–F denominator when the rated-campus share is calculated.
School Count by Type
| School Type | Schools | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Elementary | 181 | 66.5% |
| Middle School | 41 | 15.1% |
| High School | 42 | 15.4% |
| Elementary/Secondary | 8 | 2.9% |
2026 Campus Accountability Ratings
| Rating | Schools | Share of 272 |
|---|---|---|
| A | 92 | 33.8% |
| B | 113 | 41.5% |
| C | 46 | 16.9% |
| D | 9 | 3.3% |
| F | 5 | 1.8% |
| Not Rated | 7 | 2.6% |
School mix and rating distribution
- Elementary schools make up 181 of 272 schools, or 66.5% of the TEA reporting set.
- Among the 265 campuses receiving an A–F rating, 205 received an A or B, equal to about 77.4% of rated campuses.
Why Official Houston ISD Student Counts Differ
TEA sources can display different district student totals because Enrollment and Membership do not use the same reporting definition.
| Source / Measure | Student Count | Reporting Basis | Use in Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| TEA TPRS Enrollment | 168,812 | Students reported as enrolled for the TEA fall enrollment snapshot. | Enrollment trend, grade distribution, race and ethnicity |
| TEA TPRS Membership | 167,793 | Students meeting TEA membership and attendance-service rules. | Membership-based student-group indicators |
| Texas School Report Cards | 167,793 | Displayed on the district profile as Total Student Enrollment; the count matches TPRS Membership. | Profile cross-check only |
Enrollment and Membership are separate measures
- The two 2025–26 TPRS totals differ by 1,019 students, about 0.6% of the Enrollment total.
- Using one measure consistently within each chart prevents a change in reporting definition from being mistaken for a change in student population.
Data Sources and Measurement
Primary source for 2025–26 Houston ISD Enrollment, Membership, grade-level counts, race and ethnicity, student-group indicators, and statewide comparison values.
The annual district series supplies the comparable Enrollment values used from 2019–20 through 2025–26.
Source for the 272-school reporting total, school-type counts, and A–F campus rating distribution.
Source for Houston ISD's district accountability rating of B with an overall score of 85.
Used to cross-check the district profile presentation of 167,793 students, 272 schools, and the 2026 district rating.
District enrollment and demographics pages provide 2026–27 operational context. They are not substituted for the completed TEA 2025–26 statistical series.
TEA reporting documentation distinguishes Enrollment from Membership and defines the reporting basis used by TPRS measures.
Measurement: Enrollment trend, grade, and race/ethnicity sections use TPRS Enrollment. Student-group indicators use TPRS Membership. School counts and campus ratings use the TEA 2026 district summary. Annual change is calculated from consecutive TPRS Enrollment totals. Houston ISD's share of Texas enrollment divides district Enrollment by the statewide TPRS Enrollment total for the same school year.
Rounding: Most percentages are shown to one decimal place. Houston ISD's share of statewide enrollment is shown to two decimal places. Percentage-point gaps use the displayed district and statewide percentages.
The 272-school figure is the TEA 2025–26 reporting total. Current Houston ISD web properties publish different 2026–27 campus counters: the district homepage displays 264 campuses, while Demographics & Zoning describes enrollment monitoring across 273 campuses. Those figures are not treated as interchangeable because the two HISD pages do not publish the same campus-count definition. Districtwide 2026–27 enrollment is also not presented as a final total while HISD's enrollment process remains open into the school year.