Growth spurt

San Antonio suburb zooms onto list of America’s biggest boomtowns

New Braunfels is No. 14 among American boomtowns.

The San Antonio metro area is booming, and a new study from personal finance website SmartAsset ranks New Braunfels as one of the nation’s top 50 boomtowns.

To come up with its list of boomtowns, SmartAsset evaluated data for 500 of the largest U.S. cities. It looked at growth factors for each city such as five-year population change, average yearly growth in economic output (GDP), five-year change in number of businesses, five-year growth in housing, and August 2021 unemployment rate.

New Braunfels zooms to the top of the list, ranking No. 14 in the U.S. and No. 2 in Texas. The area has seen astounding growth in five years, according to SmartAsset data, with the population skyrocketing 36.03 percent, the housing rate jumping more 54.36 percent, and the town seeing a 26.29 percent change in the number of businesses.

On SmartAsset’s 100-point boomtown scale, New Braunfels earns a score of 89.82, tying with Concord, North Carolina.

Nearby Austin clocks in at No. 17 in the U.S. and No. 3 in Texas. The Capital City saw an 8.03 percent change in population, 16.4 percent change in establishments, and 12.8 percent change in housing growth during the time period studied. Neighboring Round Rock, with a score of 86.97, ties for 25th in the U.S. and takes fourth place in Texas, with an 18.53 percent change in population, 29.9 percent growth in businesses, and 23.15 percent change in housing.

It’s not just Central Texas that is booming by SmartAsset’s measurements. Three other Texas cities broke into the U.S. top 50:

Conroe (Houston metro area), No. 3, tied with Meridian, Idaho. Boomtown score: 97.56. Conroe did not appear in SmartAsset’s 2019 boomtown study.
Denton (Dallas-Fort Worth metro area), No. 36. Boomtown score: 83.87. Denton appeared at No. 2 in SmartAsset’s 2019 boomtown study.
McKinney (Dallas-Fort Worth metro area), No. 39. Boomtown score: 83.59. McKinney appeared at No. 14 in SmartAsset’s 2019 boomtown study.

Four Texas cities dropped out of the boomtown ranking from 2019 to 2021: Frisco, which ranked 13th two years ago; College Station, ranked 16th; Flower Mound, ranked 24th; and Allen, ranked 37th.

rankings lists

schools with high achievers

These 7 San Antonio K-8 schools rank among Texas' best for 2025

Basis San Antonio - Shavano Campus

Congratulations are in order for the Dragons.

Several San Antonio elementary and middle schools are at the top of the class when it comes to educating and preparing the next generation for a successful life and career, according to U.S. News & World Report's list of 2025 Elementary and Middle Schools Rankings.

One such school – Basis San Antonio - Shavano Campus – is the No. 17 best middle school in Texas for 2025.

This November, U.S. News ranked over 79,000 public schools on the state and district level using data from the U.S. Department of Education. Schools were analyzed based on their students' proficiencies in mathematics and reading/language arts on state assessments, and tie-breakers were decided based on student-teacher ratios.

"The 2025 Best Elementary and Middle Schools rankings offer parents a way to evaluate how schools are providing a high-quality education and preparing students for future success," said LaMont Jones, Ed.D., the managing editor for Education at U.S. News. "The data empowers families and communities to advocate for their children’s education. Research continues to indicate that how students perform academically at these early grade levels is a big factor in their success in high school and beyond."

Texas' best middle schools for 2025
In all, five San Antonio middle schools achieved spots among the top 100 best Texas middle schools for 2025, according to U.S. News.

The Shavano Campus of the Basis San Antonio charter school has a total enrollment of 1,018 students, with 84 percent of the student population scoring "at or above the proficient level" in mathematics, and 90 percent scoring at that level of proficiency in reading. The school has a student-teacher ratio of 16:1, with 63 full-time teachers.

Students at this charter school performed far better with its test scores than the rest of Texas, U.S. News said.

Four additional San Antonio schools ranked among the top 100 best middle schools in Texas, including:

No. 53 – Eleanor Kolitz Hebrew Language Academy
No. 62 – Lopez Middle School, North East ISD
No. 80 – Idea Carver College Preparatory
No. 97 – Young Women's Leadership Academy, San Antonio ISD

The best elementary schools in Texas
Jesus A. Kawas Elementary school in Laredo was crowned the No. 1 elementary school in Texas for 2025, while two San Antonio schools made it into the top 100.

Basis San Antonio Primary Medical Center is the No. 75 best elementary school statewide, boasting 787 students, 48 full-time teachers, and a 16:1 student-teacher ratio. Students at this school scored 80 percent efficiency in math and 85 percent efficiency in reading.

Landing at No. 90 in Texas is San Antonio's Hardy Oak Elementary in North East ISD. Hardy Oak has a student population of 683 with 37 full-time teachers, and one full-time counselor. The school's student-teacher ratio is 18:1, and 77 percent of students are proficient in math, and 85 percent are proficient in reading.

U.S. News says student success at Hardy Oak is significantly higher than the rest of North East ISD.

"In North East Independent School District, 56 percent of students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 46 percent tested at or above that level for math," U.S. News said in Hardy Oak's profile. "Hardy Oak Elementary [also] did better in math and better in reading in this metric compared with students across the state."

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