Dailey Middle

Dailey Middle in Austin, TX, is a mid-sized school serving 767 students in grades 6-8 within the Del Valle Independent School District (Isd), where over 92% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, reflecting a community with very high economic need.

Dailey Middle presents a striking contrast in its math programs. On one hand, it boasts an exceptional Algebra I program: 51% of students taking the Algebra I End-of-Course exam were proficient in 2025-2026, nearly double the district average and close to the state average. This is a consistent strength, outperforming nearby schools like Manor Middle (32.61%) and Austin Achieve Middle (38.04%). On the other hand, the school faces a critical weakness in 7th-grade math, where only 1.13% of students were proficient in 2025-2026—far below the state average of 29.41% and the lowest among comparable schools. This suggests that while advanced math students thrive, the standard math curriculum is failing the majority. Reading scores are a relative bright spot, with 6th-grade reading proficiency (29.27%) slightly above the district average (26.01%).

Despite academic struggles, Dailey Middle maintains a very low dropout rate of 0.5%, lower than the district average (1.6%) and schools like Decker Middle (2.4%). However, the school is in a declining trend, dropping from the 22nd percentile statewide in 2020-2021 to the 5th percentile in 2025-2026. Notably, KIPP Paseo Preparatory School, a nearby charter serving a similarly high-need population, achieves significantly better outcomes (37th percentile), showing that demographics don't dictate destiny. For parents, Dailey Middle offers a strong Algebra I program and keeps students enrolled, but the urgent need is to improve foundational math instruction for the majority of its students.