District · Traditional
Waco ISD
McLennan County · Region 12: Waco · 12,892 students
Waco ISD is rated D by TEA, scoring 66 out of 100 for 2025-26 — below the 76.8 average of the 144 districts serving a similar share of economically disadvantaged students, and below the statewide average of 81.7. It is down 3 points since 2021-22 — both years scored under TEA's current rules, since TEA rewrote them in 2023; under the rules in force back then it scored 75.
Ranks 990th of 1,019 Texas districts (tied with 9 others), and 73rd of 77 in Region 12: Waco (tied with 1 other).
2 consecutive years rated unacceptable.
Jump to a section
5 years of ratings
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 C with 75 that year.
| Year | Rating | Score | Similar | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | D | 66 | 76.8 | 81.7 |
| 2024-25 | D | 63 | 74.3 | 80.3 |
| 2023-24 | D | 64 | 73.0 | 78.7 |
| 2022-23 | D | 65 | 73.2 | 79.2 |
| 2021-22 | D | 69 | 76.6 | 80.6 |
How this district's change over time is ranked
TEA publishes most measures for one year only, so a change ranking exists just where the same figure is published across years — the overall score, the five score domains, and per-student spending. This page does not yet state where Waco ISD itself places on these lists, only that the lists exist; open one to find this district's own row.
Texas districts
Region 12: Waco
McLennan County
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.
- Waco ISD
- Similar student population (144)
- Region 12: Waco (77)
| Domain | Score | Grade | Points to next grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student Achievement | 62 | D | 8 |
| School Progress | 67 | D | 3 |
| Closing the Gaps | 63 | D | 7 |
| Academic Growth | 63 | D | 7 |
| Relative Performance | 67 | D | 3 |
Closest to moving up: School Progress, 3 points 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 district that better measure is School Progress (67), so Student Achievement (62) is published above but does not enter the overall score at all — gaining points there changes nothing until it passes 67.
Student outcomes
STAAR performance
- Approaches grade level
- Meets grade level
- Masters grade level
- Tick: Similar student population (144)
Percentage of tests at or above each level. Masters is a subset of Meets, which is a subset of Approaches. The tick on each bar marks the average for Similar student population (144 districts) — a comparison TEA does not publish.
Graduation
- Four-Year
- 88.2%−5.5 pts vs similar
- Five-Year
- 84.7%−10.0 pts vs similar
- Six-Year
- 86.6%−7.8 pts vs similar
- Dropout Rate
- 3.6%+2.5 pts vs similar
College, career and military readiness
| Criterion | This district | similar | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total credit for CCMR criteria | 81.0% | 84.5% | −3.5 |
| Scored at or above the college ready standard on SAT, ACT, TSIA, or earned credit for a college prep course | 57.6% | 48.5% | +9.1 |
| Scored at or above the college ready standard on SAT, ACT, TSIA | 24.9% | 20.1% | +4.8 |
| Met criterion score on AP/IB exam(s) | 12.5% | 6.7% | +5.8 |
| Earned college credit for a dual credit course | 11.1% | 31.8% | −20.7 |
| Earned an industry-based certification | 36.0% | 41.9% | −5.9 |
| Earned a level I or level II certificate | 0.0% | 3.6% | −3.6 |
| Earned an associate degree | 2.9% | 5.7% | −2.8 |
| Completed an OnRamps course and qualified for college credit | 0.0% | 3.2% | −3.2 |
| Graduated with completed individualized education program (IEP) and workforce readiness | 4.6% | 3.0% | +1.6 |
| Graduated under an advanced diploma plan and identified as a current special education student | 7.8% | 9.6% | −1.8 |
| Enlisted in the U.S. Armed Forces | 2.4% | 3.2% | −0.8 |
Who this district serves
Placed after the results deliberately: this is context for reading them, not an explanation of them.
- Students
- 12,892
- Economically disadvantaged
- 89.1%+3.0 pts vs similar
- English learners
- 26.0%+3.0 pts vs similar
- Special education
- 21.1%+2.8 pts vs similar
- Attendance
- 91.5%−1.5 pts vs similar
- Chronically absent
- 27.9%+4.9 pts vs similar
Student demographics
- African American 27.1%
- Hispanic 62.1%
- White 7.5%
- American Indian 0.2%
- Asian 0.2%
- Two or More Races 2.8%
Spending per student
Compared against TEA's own peer group, which controls for size and student population, and against the state.
- Waco ISD
- TEA peer group
- Texas average
Spends $3,594 more per student than its peer group, and $3,592 more than the state average.
Teachers
- Average salary
- $62,640−$2,068 vs similar
- Teachers
- 968
- Students per staff member
- 13.3
Teaching experience
- Beginning 12.1%
- 1 to 5 years 29.5%
- 6 to 10 years 24.2%
- 11 to 20 years 21.8%
- 21 to 30 years 8.8%
- Over 30 years 3.7%
Where this district ranks best
Out of 164 rankings computed across every published metric and every comparison group, these are the placements that stand out. Press Copy for a citable sentence.
-
2of 17
Earned an associate degree
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
5of 18
Per-student spending
McLennan County · of the 18 that report this measure
-
7of 17
Met criterion score on AP/IB exam(s)
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
7of 17
Enlisted in the U.S. Armed Forces
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
8of 17
Earned an industry-based certification
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
9of 17
Graduated under an advanced diploma plan and identified as a current special education student
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
10of 17
Graduated with completed individualized education program (IEP) and workforce readiness
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure
-
2of 17
Earned a level I or level II certificate
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure · tied with 15
-
3of 17
Completed an OnRamps course and qualified for college credit
McLennan County · of the 17 that report this measure · tied with 14
These are selected high placements, not a summary. Every figure above this section is the full picture, including where this district ranks poorly. Each statement below states its cohort and its denominator so it can be checked — a rank without an n is a boast, not a fact. Ties are shown because a shared ceiling is not a sole first place. Every ranking this site publishes, including the ones no district would put in a press release.
22 schools in this district
| School | Type | Rating | Score | Students |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar Ridge Elem | Elementary | B | 82 | 399 |
| University HS | High School | B | 80 | 1,744 |
| Lake Air Montessori School | Elementary | C | 76 | 705 |
| Hillcrest PDS Magnet | Elementary | C | 75 | 436 |
| Provident Heights Elem | Elementary | C | 72 | 355 |
| Waco HS | High School | C | 70 | 1,703 |
| Tennyson MS | Middle / Jr. High | D | 69 | 999 |
| Parkdale Elem | Elementary | D | 67 | 488 |
| Brook Avenue Elem | Elementary | D | 65 | 360 |
| Kendrick Elem | Elementary | D | 64 | 804 |
| Bell's Hill Elem | Elementary | D | 61 | 719 |
| Crestview Elem | Elementary | F | 59 | 461 |
| Cesar Chavez MS | Middle / Jr. High | F | 58 | 836 |
| JH Hines Elem | Elementary | F | 58 | 359 |
| G W Carver MS | Middle / Jr. High | F | 57 | 625 |
| Dean Highland Elem | Elementary | F | 57 | 573 |
| Mountainview Elem | Elementary | F | 54 | 334 |
| South Waco Elem | Elementary | F | 49 | 609 |
| West Avenue Elem | Elementary | F | 48 | 268 |
| Challenge Academy | K-12 | Not Rated | — | 52 |
| G L Wiley Opportunity Center | K-12 | Not Rated | — | 43 |
| Bill Logue Detention Center | High School | Not Rated | — | 20 |
Where this comes from
Every figure on this page comes from data the Texas Education Agency publishes at txschools.gov, fetched 15 August 2026 and archived with a checksum so each number stays traceable to the bytes TEA served.