Enrollment
175
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 480002407392 Charter school
Waco Charter School — Waco, TX
Federal NCES profile for Waco Charter School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 59
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 64
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 →
The verdict
Waco Charter School earns a C- Resource Investment Index (51/100), with class sizes smaller than 91% of Texas schools.
- C-
- Resource Index · 51/100
- 10.3:1
- small classes for Texas
- 85.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 175
- students enrolled
School address
District: Waco Charter School · Texas
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)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.3:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
85.7%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+38% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Waco Charter School 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
Waco Charter School reports 175 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 17.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 29% 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 15.7:1, it is 34% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 85.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 38% above the Texas average and 65% above the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 14.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Waco Charter School spends $14,166 per pupil district-wide, above the Texas average of $13,644 and below the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 0.9% from local sources (property taxes), 71.1% from the state, and 28.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-), calculated from 3 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 Waco Charter School 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 | 10.3:1 | ▼ 29% | 14.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 85.7% | ▲ 38% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 175 | top 14% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
10 Among the smallest classes smaller classes than 89% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
175 larger than 17% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
85.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 38% 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
10.3:1
students per teacher
— 29% below state mean
Top 9% in Texas — lower ratio than 91% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
14.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$14,166
per pupil, district-wide
— above Texas avg of $13,644
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Overview
Enrollment 175 Top 14% in Texas — larger than 86% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 17.0
Students per teacher 10.3:1 -29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 85.7% +38% vs state
NCES ID 480002407392
Programs & staff
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 14.3%
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waco Charter School, which includes Waco Charter School.
$14,166
Per student
+4%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 0.9%
State 71.1%
Federal 28.0%
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.
Similar other schools in Waco
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Bell'S Hill El
Standard public school
786 students 15.2:1 students per teacher
Lake Air Montessori School
Standard public school
734 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Dean Highland El
Standard public school
617 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
South Bosque El
Standard public school
578 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Harmony Science Acad (Waco)
Standard public school
569 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
Woodway El
Standard public school
547 students 16.2:1 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 Waco Charter School
How many students attend Waco Charter School?
Waco Charter School has 175 students enrolled. It is a other school in WACO, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Waco Charter School?
The student-teacher ratio at Waco Charter School is 10.3:1, which is 29% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 34% 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 Waco Charter School?
85.7% of students at Waco Charter School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Waco Charter School?
Waco Charter School has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.
Is Waco Charter School a good school?
Waco Charter School earns a C- Resource Investment Index (51/100), with class sizes smaller than 91% of Texas schools. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.