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El Campo schools take step into future
The city of El Campo is a quiet place where children still can ride a bike safely and go to schools that provide a good, solid education.
El Campo Independent School District traces it roots to a one-room schoolhouse with seven students established in 1889. ECISD was offi- cially organized on Aug. 15, 1895, and currently serves 3,500 students on five campuses.
ECISD students begin their studies at Myatt Elementary, which educates children in pre-kindergarten through first grade. They move to Hutchins Elementary for grades two and three, followed by Northside Elementary for grades four and five.
Students in grades six through eight moved this February into the brand-new El Campo Middle School campus, and from there attend El Campo High School from their freshman through senior years.
The El Campo school district has achieved an Academically Acceptable state rating, while two of its elementary schools performed well above those standards and received "Recognized" status from the Texas Education Agency.
The district has recently tightened its standards in the Gifted and Talented program, beginning at the elementary school level, while also providing award-winning vocational programs at the high school.
Advanced Placement courses allow collegebound students a solid preparation for their next step in education. High school seniors can dually enroll in some college courses through Wharton County Junior College.
In 2007 El Campo ISD built the new $17.6 million middle school campus, which opened its doors to students and faculty in February 2008.
Designers studied the effects of color on children and created a light-filled space, in a warm, residential palate at the new school. It features a massive, airy commons area, where students will dine. It contains a stage and a kitchen that will be glassed in to contain noise.
The color scheme of the entire facility features warm neutral creme, graybrown and russet colors with bright red highlights, used from floor to ceiling throughout the complex.
Bookshelves and a lockable teacher wardrobe complete with two-drawer file cabinets are located in the corner of each classroom. TV sets sit on top of wardrobes to save floor space. The new classrooms average 720 square feet; the Texas Education Agency recommends a minimum of 700 square feet.
Parochial School
El Campo also is home of Saint Philip Catholic School, a private co-educational elementary/middle school sponsored by Saint Philip the Apostle Catholic Church in the Diocese of Victoria. Saint Philip, which accepts students from preschool through eighth grade, is accredited by the Texas Catholic Conference Education Department and is recognized by the Texas Education Agency.
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