Enrollment
383
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Waco, TX
Provident Heights El
Federal NCES profile for Provident Heights El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 484428005052
👥 S:T ratio 43
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 23
📋 Attendance 30
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Provident Heights El earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #25 of 32
- schools in Waco · Resource Index
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.2:1
- students per teacher
- 93.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Provident Heights El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Provident Heights El ranks #25 of 32 schools in Waco, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.2:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
93.0%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+50% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Provident Heights El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Provident Heights El
Provident Heights El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Waco, Texas, enrolling 383 students.
At 14.2:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need is high: 93.0% of students qualify for free meals, 50% above the Texas average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 383 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,350 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #504.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (77%) and African American (14%) (diversity index 38/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 383 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 19.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Waco Isd also operates Waco H S (1,885 students) and University H S (1,752 students) alongside Provident Heights El.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Provident Heights El compares
Provident Heights El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.2:1 | ▼ 3% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 93.0% | ▲ 50% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 383 | top 66% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.2:1
Leaner classes than 55% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
383
Bigger than 45% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
93.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 50% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.2:1
students per teacher
- 3% below state mean
Top 50% in Texas - lower ratio than 50% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
28.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,294
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 383 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 77.0%
African American 14.4%
White 5.2%
Two or More 2.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 77.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 38.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 38.3, Provident Heights El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waco Isd, which includes Provident Heights El.
$13,294
Per student
-3%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
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.
How Provident Heights El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waco H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| University H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tennyson Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Bell's Hill El | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Cesar Chavez Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Provident Heights El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,885
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 1,752
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 963
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 786
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 786
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~383 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.2:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Provident Heights El's federal record.
- Compare Provident Heights El against another school. Compare schools
- Waco Isd's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Provident Heights El
How many students attend Provident Heights El?
Provident Heights El has 383 students enrolled. It is a public school in Waco, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Provident Heights El?
The student-teacher ratio at Provident Heights El is 14.2:1, which is 3% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 10% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Provident Heights El?
93.0% of students at Provident Heights El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Provident Heights El?
The largest demographic group at Provident Heights El is Hispanic or Latino at 77.0% of enrollment, in Waco, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Provident Heights El?
Provident Heights El has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Provident Heights El rank among schools in Waco?
By Resource Investment Index, Provident Heights El ranks #25 of 32 schools in Waco, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Waco on the city page.
Is Provident Heights El a good school?
Provident Heights El earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Waco Isd?
Besides Provident Heights El, Waco Isd also operates Waco H S (1,885 students), University H S (1,752 students), and Tennyson Middle (963 students). See the Waco Isd district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.