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What tradition at WACO H S should never be changed?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,885
High
DISTRICT 760 · STATE 796
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WACO ISD·NCES 484428005054
Waco High School
2020 N 42ND ST, WACO, TX 76710 · (254) 776-1150 · McLennan County
GRADES 09–12HIGH12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL1,885 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.4:1
140 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 28.8:1 · STATE 15.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
84%
1,577 students
DISTRICT 89% · STATE 65%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 650 | 34% |
| Grade 10 | 454 | 24% |
| Grade 11 | 412 | 22% |
| Grade 12 | 369 | 20% |
Student demographics
55%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 53% · STATE 63% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
STAAR 2025-26 . % Meets Grade Level or AboveReading
31.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +14.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
30.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +10.0pp since 2020
What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 31 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 30 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are up about 14 points since 2020, while math scores are up about 10 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 5.0% | 26.0% | 20.0% | 49.0% |
| Mathematics | 7.0% | 23.0% | 40.0% | 30.0% |
Share of tested students at each STAAR level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.
STAAR results by year
| School year | Reading | Mathematics |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 31.0% | 30.0% |
| 2024-25 | 24.0% | 29.0% |
| 2023-24 | 32.0% | 24.0% |
| 2022-23 | 22.0% | 20.0% |
| 2021-22 | 14.0% | 19.0% |
| 2020-21 | 17.0% | 20.0% |
% Meets Grade Level or Above, all students and all tested grades.
Source: STAAR. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
33.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.0%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.4pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 34% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 38% typical for Texas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Texas's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Waco High School
Waco High School's state test result (33.6% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waco High School this school | 1,885 | 83.7% | 33.6% |
| Tyler High School TYLER | 2,148 | 86.7% | 40.8% |
| Mesquite High School MESQUITE | 2,294 | 85.0% | 46.0% |
| Lufkin High School LUFKIN | 2,026 | 84.0% | 47.8% |
| Davis H S Aldine HOUSTON | 3,184 | 83.3% | 34.5% |
| Madison High School HOUSTON | 1,588 | 89.9% | 39.5% |
Matched among Texas high schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Waco High School ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Texas | In McLennan County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.6% | #1,284 of 1,385 | #19 of 20 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 30.0% | #1,103 of 1,425 ▼ 90 | #16 of 20 ▼ 3 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 31.0% | #1,376 of 1,425 ▲ 26 | #20 of 20 no change |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +9.5pp | #833 of 1,184 | #8 of 13 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,885 | #359 of 2,107 | #2 of 34 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.4:1 | #467 of 1,344 | #15 of 20 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 55.1% | #501 of 1,346 | #10 of 21 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 83.7% | #333 of 1,522 | #6 of 22 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -4.4% | #426 of 557 | N/A |
Ranked against other public high schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
1,885
-237 (-11%) vs 2020
+11% since 1990-91, when it was 1,694
Student : Teacher
13.4:1
was 14.7:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 1,885 | 140.2 | 13.4:1 | 84% (1,577) |
| 2023-24 | 1,778 | 143.8 | 12.4:1 | 87% (1,548) |
| 2022-23 | 2,011 | 151.1 | 13.3:1 | 88% (1,770) |
| 2020-21 | 2,122 | 144 | 14.7:1 | 88% (1,875) |
| 2017-18 | 1,971 | 133.8 | 14.7:1 | 80% (1,584) |
| 2015-16 | 1,809 | 124 | 14.6:1 | 79% (1,435) |
| 2010-11 | 1,552 | 126 | 12.3:1 | 73% (1,138) |
| 2000-01 | 1,832 | 113 | 16.2:1 | 55% (1,005) |
| 1990-91 | 1,694 | 106 | 16.0:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Waco High School.
Since 2017-18: students down 4% (1,971 to 1,885); teachers up 5% (133.8 to 140.2).
About Waco High School
Waco High School operates as a high-enrollment high school in WACO, Texas. The school reports 1,885 students in grades 9 through 12. The school's enrollment is 137% above the 796 average for high schools in Texas.
District-wide, WACO ISD has 24 schools and 13,476 students.
Hispanic students are the majority at Waco High School, with 59% of enrollment. It is also 30% Black, 8% White, and 2% multiracial. McLennan County's residents are about 27% Hispanic, 32 points below the school's share. Pick two students at random and there is a 55% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
Waco High School operates with 140.2 full-time-equivalent teachers, a ratio of about 13.4:1. That is lower than the 15.1:1 average for high schools in Texas. About 84% of students at the school meet free or reduced-price lunch income limits. Among public schools in McLennan County, the average eligibility rate is 62%.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 38.0% at Waco High School; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 33.6%.
McLennan County has these Census figures: the median household income is $66,643, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 29% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 11%. McLennan County is home to 124 public schools and about 45,703 public school students.
The nearest other public school, Lake Air Montessori School, is about 0.5 miles away. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools. On average proficiency, Waco High School is 4th of 9 nearby schools with test data.
For locale, NCES codes Waco High School as City: Mid-size.
Federal data show an 11% enrollment decrease, from 2,122 in 2020-21 to 1,885 in 2024-25. Students per teacher fell from 14.7 in 2020-21 to 13.4 in 2024-25.
To ask about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs, start a discussion on this page. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
McLennan County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
266,067
Census ACS
Median income
$66,643
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
29%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
124
45,703 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in WACO ISD
- University High SchoolHigh · 1,752 students
- Tennyson Middle SchoolMiddle · 963 students
- Bell's Hill Elementary SchoolElementary · 786 students
- Cesar Chavez Middle SchoolMiddle · 786 students
- Lake Air Montessori SchoolElementary · 734 students
- G W Carver Middle SchoolMiddle · 723 students
Other schools in WACO
- Midway High SchoolHigh · 2,687 students
- University High SchoolHigh · 1,752 students
- Tennyson Middle SchoolMiddle · 963 students
- La Vega High SchoolHigh · 881 students
- Bell's Hill Elementary SchoolElementary · 786 students
- Cesar Chavez Middle SchoolMiddle · 786 students
Other Waco High schools
One other US public school is named Waco High. Waco High School is the largest of the 2.
- WACO High SchoolWayland, IA · 241 students
Nearby schools
- Lake Air Montessori School0.5 mi · 734
- Hillcrest Pds Magnet0.6 mi · 431
- Crestview Elementary School0.7 mi · 464
- Dean Highland Elementary School0.8 mi · 617
- Harmony Science Academy (waco)1.2 mi · 569
- Mountainview Elementary School1.2 mi · 349
Frequently asked questions
About Waco High SchoolHow many students attend Waco High School?
Waco High School enrolls approximately 1,885 students in grades 09-12.
What grades does Waco High School serve?
Waco High School serves grades 09-12.
How many teachers does Waco High School have?
Waco High School employs 140 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.4:1.
What is the student diversity at Waco High School?
Student demographics at Waco High School are roughly 8% White, 59% Hispanic, 30% Black, 0% Asian, 2% Two or more.
What district is Waco High School in?
Waco High School is part of WACO ISD.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.