Independent Texas school research. TEA data, clearly explained. Not affiliated with the state agencyTEA.

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Traditional public school campus

Palo Alto MS

Bell County · Region 12: Waco · 772 students

Official school websiteSchool information and family resources

Current score
68/1002025-26
Change
+7 ptssince 2021-22
Score vs similar economic context
−9.5 ptsvs 77.5 average · 2,242 rated schools serving a similar economic context
Similar economic-disadvantage rate placement
1,829 of 2,242tied with 44 others
D68

At a glance

Under TEA’s current rules, the available rating history is moving up; under the rules in force back then it scored 59 in 2021-22. The current score is below the 77.5 average for 2,242 rated schools serving a similar economic context.

Evidence worth noticing

Strengths and momentum

Selected positive signals, not a summary of performance. The same rules choose them on every page: only the latest one-year gain, results meaningfully better than the currently selected comparison with broad reporting, and distinctive top-three placements. Demographics, staffing and spending cannot become academic “wins.” The overall rating and the full results below remain the complete picture for this school.

Read the full rating context and placement

Palo Alto MS is rated D by TEA, scoring 68 out of 100 for 2025-26 — below the 77.5 average for 2,242 rated schools serving a similar economic context. It is up 7 points since 2021-22.

Ranks 1,829th of 2,242 rated schools serving a similar economic context (tied with 44 others).

3 consecutive years rated unacceptable. At three or more years, Texas law provides for state intervention.

Put the numbers in context

Compare with

Jump to a section
  1. Overview
  2. Official improvement and transfer notices
  3. 5 years of ratings
  4. Where the score comes from
  5. Student outcomes
  6. Who this school serves
  7. Student counts behind the percentages
  8. Enrollment over time
  9. Discipline and removal from class
  10. Spending per student
  11. Teachers and actual class size
  12. Where this comes from

Official improvement and transfer notices

Official state and federal designations can carry support, reporting requirements or a family transfer option that a single A–F rating does not explain.

2026 federal improvement status

Targeted Support and Improvement

Official support label: TSI

Identification reason: African American, Economically Disadvantaged

TEA track year 0 · Title I campus

Open the official TEA list and methodology

2026-27 school year

Public Education Grant transfer eligibility

Students assigned to this campus may request a transfer under the state's PEG program.

A request is not guaranteed. A receiving district may apply its enrollment rules, and transportation is not automatically provided.

Read the official PEG rules and list

Schools identified for improvement

This school
Listed
Selected comparison
35.4%

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,242 rated schools reporting

Schools on the PEG list

This school
Listed
Selected comparison
7.4%

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,242 rated schools reporting

Selected comparison percentages are the share of reporting schools in that group found on each dated list. They are neutral prevalence context; changing the comparison never changes this school's official status.

These are dated TEA statuses, fetched 24 August 2026; they are not added to or subtracted from this site's rating.

5 years of ratings

Follow the solid line to see how this school has changed. Turn comparison lines on or off to add context.

Compare against
9080706050 Similar economic-disadvantage rateTexas averagePalo Alto MS 6161595968 2021-222022-232023-242024-252025-26

2021-22 is shown under the refreshed methodology TEA adopted in 2023, so it is comparable with later years. Under the original scoring it was rated Not Rated with 59 that year.

Comparison lines follow the current rated cohort backward through time. The table gives the number in that fixed cohort that reported a score each year; it can be smaller than cohort membership.

View the yearly scores and comparisons
Rating history with comparisons
YearRatingScoreSelected comparisonSimilar economic-disadvantage rateStateTexas average
2025-26D6877.5 2,242 reporting81.3 7,646 reporting
2024-25F5977.1 2,229 reporting81.2 7,554 reporting
2023-24F5974.4 2,212 reporting78.9 7,466 reporting
2022-23D6174.8 2,198 reporting79.1 7,377 reporting
2021-22D6181.6 2,178 reporting83.7 7,283 reporting

Where the score comes from

Texas builds the overall rating from the better of Student Achievement and School Progress, weighted 70%, plus Closing the Gaps at 30%. School Progress is itself the better of Academic Growth and Relative Performance. The 60, 70, 80 and 90 rules mark the letter-grade thresholds.

  • Student Achievement60 D−11.7 vs similar economic context · 2,074 reporting
  • School Progress69 D−9.7 vs similar economic context · 2,066 reporting
  • Closing the Gaps67 D−7.6 vs similar economic context · 2,050 reporting
  • Academic Growth60 D−12.2 vs similar economic context · 2,018 reporting
  • Relative Performance69 D−7.9 vs similar economic context · 2,066 reporting
  • Palo Alto MS
  • Similar economic-disadvantage rate (2,242 in cohort)
Domain scores
DomainScoreGradePoints to next grade
Student Achievement60D10
School Progress69D1
Closing the Gaps67D3
Academic Growth60D10
Relative Performance69D1

Closest to moving up: School Progress, 1 point below C in that domain — the nearest of the measures that count toward the overall rating.

TEA does not add the domains up. The overall score is the better of Student Achievement and School Progress at 70%, plus Closing the Gaps at 30%. For this school that better measure is School Progress (69), so Student Achievement (60) is published above but does not enter the overall score at all — gaining points there changes nothing until it passes 69.

Student outcomes

STAAR performance

All Subjects

  • Approaches grade level56%−12 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,074 reporting
  • Meets grade level30%−11 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,074 reporting
  • Masters grade level10%−6 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,074 reporting
Reading3 performance levels
  • Approaches grade level61%−9 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,072 reporting
  • Meets grade level36%−10 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,072 reporting
  • Masters grade level14%−4 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,072 reporting
Math3 performance levels
  • Approaches grade level53%−13 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,062 reporting
  • Meets grade level27%−11 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,062 reporting
  • Masters grade level7%−7 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,062 reporting
Science3 performance levels
  • Approaches grade level65%−1 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 1,913 reporting
  • Meets grade level39%+3 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 1,913 reporting
  • Masters grade level14%−1 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 1,913 reporting
Social Studies3 performance levels
  • Approaches grade level33%−33 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 795 reporting
  • Meets grade level13%−24 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 795 reporting
  • Masters grade level3%−13 vs Similar economic-disadvantage rate · 795 reporting
  • Approaches grade level
  • Meets grade level
  • Masters grade level
  • Tick: Similar economic-disadvantage rate (2,242 in cohort)

Percentage of tests at or above each level. Masters is a subset of Meets, which is a subset of Approaches. The selected-comparison tick on each bar marks the average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate — a comparison TEA does not publish.

Counts in the comparison controls describe full cohort membership, not the denominator of every average. Each average uses only schools for which TEA reported that measure; metric-specific reporting counts are shown on the STAAR, graduation and CCMR rows and may vary.

Who this school serves

Placed after the results deliberately: this is context for reading them, not an explanation of them.

Students
772
Economically disadvantaged
82.4%−0.7 pts vs similar economic context
English learners
13.7%−18.1 pts vs similar economic context
Special education
32.1%+13.5 pts vs similar economic context
Attendance
93.0%−0.3 pts vs similar economic context
Chronically absent
24.5%+3.2 pts vs similar economic context

Student demographics

Palo Alto MS

African American: 45.5%Hispanic: 33.3%White: 9.1%American Indian: 0.5%Asian: 1.7%Pacific Islander: 2.2%Two or More Races: 7.8%
  • African American 45.5%
  • Hispanic 33.3%
  • White 9.1%
  • American Indian 0.5%
  • Asian 1.7%
  • Pacific Islander 2.2%
  • Two or More Races 7.8%

Selected comparison average For schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,242 reporting for every category shown · 2,242 in full cohort

African American: 14.2%Hispanic: 70.2%White: 11.2%American Indian: 0.3%Asian: 1.5%Pacific Islander: 0.1%Two or More Races: 2.4%
  • African American 14.2%
  • Hispanic 70.2%
  • White 11.2%
  • American Indian 0.3%
  • Asian 1.5%
  • Pacific Islander 0.1%
  • Two or More Races 2.4%

Student counts behind the percentages

Context only. These counts are not rankings, comparisons, or judgments about school quality.

Students in this TEA accountability summary
772
Economically disadvantaged students
636
Emergent bilingual students
106
Special education students
248

Campus mobility · 2024–25

Mobile students
281
Students in TEA mobility denominator
924
TEA-published mobility rate
30.4%

The mobility count and rate use TEA’s separate 2024–25 campus denominator shown above, not current enrollment. This site does not recalculate a missing rate.

The first figure is TEA’s student count for this accountability summary. It is a separate publication from the fall PEIMS enrollment shown above and can differ; this site does not substitute one for the other. Counts come from TEA’s 2025-26 accountability summary, fetched 29 August 2026. A reported zero is shown as 0. Small-number and complementary masks, unavailable values, and blank not-reported fields stay separate and are never estimated. TEA masking definitions.

Enrollment over time

TEA-reported student enrollment for each available school year. Enrollment growth or decline is not a measure of school quality.

TEA reported 772 students in 2025–26, a decrease of 9 (1.2%) from 2024–25.

Latest enrollment
772

2025–26

Change from 2024–25
−9

Decrease · −1.2%

Change since 2021–22
−63

Decrease · −7.5%

Enrollment in 2025–26

This school
772
Selected comparison
616.7

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,214 rated schools reporting

Student enrollment by school year for Palo Alto MS
School yearStudents enrolledPalo Alto MSChange from previous school yearAverage enrollmentselected comparison
2021–22 835 First available year 647.4
2022–23 790 Decrease of 45 (5.4%) 648
2023–24 759 Decrease of 31 (3.9%) 641
2024–25 781 Increase of 22 (2.9%) 637
2025–26 772 Decrease of 9 (1.2%) 616.7

The selected comparison column is the average enrollment among reporting schools in that group. It changes with the comparison control; this school's own counts do not.

Source: TEA PEIMS Student Program and Special Populations Reports, fetched 24 August 2026. TEA reports these counts from its fall student snapshot; changes compare adjacent reported school years.

These counts show how enrollment changed, not why. Attendance-zone changes, school openings or closures, grade reconfigurations, transfers and population shifts can affect the total.

Discipline and removal from class

TEA’s annual student and action counts, kept separate and divided only by the matching full-year enrollment. These figures describe removals from instruction, not a simple safe-or-unsafe score.

Students in TEA’s all-discipline count
352

40.6% of cumulative year-end enrollment

Disciplinary actions
1,472

169.98 per 100 students

Cumulative year-end enrollment
866

2024–25

Share of students · 2024–25

This school
40.6%
Selected comparison
13.3%

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 1,597 rated schools reporting

+27.3 pts vs similar economic context

Actions per 100 students · 2024–25

This school
169.98
Selected comparison
32.2

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 1,711 rated schools reporting

+137.8 vs similar economic context
TEA all-discipline student and action counts by school year for Palo Alto MS
School yearCumulative enrollmentStudentsall disciplineStudents% of enrollmentActionsall disciplineActionsper 100 studentsStudentsselected comparison average %Actionsselected comparison average per 100
2020–21 958 152 15.9% 322 33.61 8.1% 15.9
2021–22 932 295 31.6% 830 89.06 12.9% 30.9
2022–23 867 389 44.9% 1,366 157.55 13.8% 34
2023–24 839 332 39.6% 1,059 126.22 13.8% 33.9
2024–25 866 352 40.6% 1,472 169.98 13.3% 32.2
See 2024–25 discipline categories
TEA discipline categories for Palo Alto MS in 2024–25
CategoryStudentsStudents% of enrollmentActionsActionsper 100 studentsStudentsselected comparison average %Actionsselected comparison average per 100
All discipline 352 40.6% 1,472 169.98 13.3% 32.2
In-school suspensions 307 35.5% 1,065 122.98 11.7% 23.3
Out-of-school suspensions 164 18.9% 279 32.22 8.6% 13.5
DAEP placements 88 10.2% 109 12.59 5.4% 6.5
Mandatory DAEP placements 19 2.2% 20 2.31 3.9% 4.6
Discretionary DAEP placements 75 8.7% 89 10.28 3.4% 4
JJAEP placements Not reported — Not reported — — —
Mandatory JJAEP placements Not reported — Not reported — — —
Discretionary JJAEP placements Not reported — Not reported — — —
Expulsions Not reported — Not reported — — —
Mandatory expulsions Not reported — Not reported — — —
Discretionary expulsions Not reported — Not reported — — —

Selected comparisons use rates, not raw counts, so differently sized schools can be read on the same basis. Each average uses only group members for which TEA reported that rate; this school's own counts and rates remain fixed.

Students, actions and incidents are different units. One student can receive multiple actions. The categories overlap, so they must not be added together. Rates use TEA's matching cumulative year-end enrollment, not the October enrollment shown elsewhere on this page.

Source: TEA Discipline Reports, fetched 24 August 2026. Suppressed values stay unavailable rather than being estimated. Use 2020–21 cautiously because remote instruction during the pandemic changed students' exposure to in-person discipline. TEA consolidated its separate action-group reports into this product in 2024–25; this trend uses only the stable “All discipline” heading.

Spending per student

The campus and its parent district stay fixed while the selected same-sector txschools.net comparison changes with the page-wide control. TEA's own peer group and statewide reference remain visible as separately published, fixed TEA references.

$7k$13k$20k20182020202220242025
  • Palo Alto MS
  • Parent district: Killeen ISD
  • Texas average
  • Selected comparison: Similar economic-disadvantage rate

Spending per student · 2025

This school
$10,318
Selected comparison
$13,275

average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,227 rated schools reporting

−$2,957 vs similar economic context

For 2025, TEA reported $10,318 per student for this campus, $14,322 per student for its parent district, Killeen ISD, $18,972 per student for the Texas average.

Not reported in this TEA campus finance record: TEA peer group.

View yearly spending figures
Spending per student by year
YearPalo Alto MSParent district: Killeen ISDTexas averageSelected comparison averageReportingselected comparison
2018$8,444$9,955$13,054$8,243 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,113 rated schools reporting
2019$9,989$10,689$13,108$8,339 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,141 rated schools reporting
2020$9,779$13,484$14,058$8,859 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,154 rated schools reporting
2021$8,012$14,264$14,797$9,536 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,162 rated schools reporting
2022$8,420$13,404$15,708$11,000 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,178 rated schools reporting
2023$10,564$14,811$16,792$11,510 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,197 rated schools reporting
2024$10,911$15,038$18,125$12,494 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,211 rated schools reporting
2025$10,318$14,322$18,972$13,275 average for schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,227 rated schools reporting

The selected-comparison reporting count is year-specific and can vary across the table. Dollar amounts are shown as TEA published them and are not adjusted for inflation.

Teachers and actual class size

Average salary
$64,344−$3,060 vs similar economic context
Teachers
47+4.1 vs similar economic context
Students per staff member
16.6+2.3 vs similar economic context

Teaching experience

Palo Alto MS

Beginning: 12.7%1 to 5 years: 57.5%6 to 10 years: 8.4%11 to 20 years: 16.5%21 to 30 years: 4.7%Over 30 years: 0.2%
  • Beginning 12.7%
  • 1 to 5 years 57.5%
  • 6 to 10 years 8.4%
  • 11 to 20 years 16.5%
  • 21 to 30 years 4.7%
  • Over 30 years 0.2%

Selected comparison average For schools with a similar economic-disadvantage rate · 2,242 reporting for every category shown · 2,242 in full cohort

Beginning: 7%1 to 5 years: 27.6%6 to 10 years: 19%11 to 20 years: 27.2%21 to 30 years: 15.1%Over 30 years: 3.6%
  • Beginning 7%
  • 1 to 5 years 27.6%
  • 6 to 10 years 19%
  • 11 to 20 years 27.2%
  • 21 to 30 years 15.1%
  • Over 30 years 3.6%

Average students in a class

TEA average class size by grade or subject for Palo Alto MS in 2024–25
Grade or subjectAverage students per classPalo Alto MS · 2024–25Average students per classselected comparison
Grade 616.117.6
Secondary English10.315.2
Secondary math14.616.5
Secondary science1517.7
Secondary social studies15.617.7

These are TEA's actual class-size averages for the grade or subject shown, not the student-to-teacher ratio. TEA reported 5 of 12 categories for this campus; the categories are not combined into a made-up campus-wide average. Each selected comparison average uses only schools reporting that same grade or subject.

Source: TEA Texas Academic Performance Reports, fetched 24 August 2026.

Where this comes from

The Texas Education Agency publishes the underlying accountability reports and data downloads. Ratings, outcomes, demographics, staffing and finance on this page come from TEA data available through txschools.gov, fetched 15 August 2026. TEA’s Reports and Data Portal links the official bulk files. Enrollment history comes from TEA's PEIMS Student Program and Special Populations reports, fetched 24 August 2026. The student-count context comes from TEA’s bulk accountability summary, fetched 29 August 2026; TEA’s masking definitions explain withheld values. The dated notice, staffing, discipline, transfer, community and postsecondary sections cite their separate TEA, Census or THECB publication in place. Every archived source carries checksums so each number stays traceable to the bytes the public agency served.

Download the full dataset · this campus's district

Single-file records are pre-built for district-level records only, so there is no per-campus CSV to link here. Producing both formats for every entity would consume most of the 20,000-asset deployment limit before pages and shared data are counted. This campus is a row in the bulk files on the download page, keyed by its TEA id 014906048.