Enrollment
786
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 484428009345
Cesar Chavez Middle — Waco, TX
Federal NCES profile for Cesar Chavez Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 47
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 48
📋 Attendance 0
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
63.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.3:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
89.9%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+45% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cesar Chavez Middle compares with Texas and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Cesar Chavez Middle reports 786 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 63.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% below the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 16% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 89.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 45% above the Texas average and 74% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 262 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 56.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Waco Isd spends $15,641 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 46.6% from local sources (property taxes), 33.9% from the state, and 19.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Cesar Chavez Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.3:1 | ▼ 9% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 89.9% | ▲ 45% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 786 | top 80% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
89.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 45% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.3:1
students per teacher
— 9% below state mean
Top 31% in Texas — lower ratio than 69% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
56.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,641
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 262 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
192
in-school suspensions + 184 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 24.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 47.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 45 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 786 Top 80% in Texas — larger than 20% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 63.0
Students per teacher 13.3:1 -9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 89.9% +45% vs state
NCES ID 484428009345
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 76.5%
African American 18.1%
White 4.1%
Two or More 1.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 76.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 262:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 56.7%
In-school suspensions 192
Out-of-school suspensions 184
Expulsions 45
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waco Isd, which includes Cesar Chavez Middle.
$15,641
Per student
-9%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 46.6%
State 33.9%
Federal 19.5%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,885
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,752
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Enrollment
- 963
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 786
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 734
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
Similar middle schools in Waco
5 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Tennyson Middle
Standard public school
963 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Indian Spring Middle
Standard public school
723 students 11.2:1 students per teacher
La Vega J H George Dixon Campus
Standard public school
441 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
G W Carver Middle
Standard public school
393 students 12.3:1 students per teacher
Bosqueville Middle
Standard public school
183 students 12.4:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Cesar Chavez Middle
How many students attend Cesar Chavez Middle?
Cesar Chavez Middle has 786 students enrolled. It is a middle school in WACO, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cesar Chavez Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Cesar Chavez Middle is 13.3:1, which is 9% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 16% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cesar Chavez Middle?
89.9% of students at Cesar Chavez Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cesar Chavez Middle?
The largest demographic group at Cesar Chavez Middle is Hispanic or Latino at 76.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in WACO, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cesar Chavez Middle?
Cesar Chavez Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.