Best Public Schools in Zip Code 73573

Zip code 73573 has three schools serving 425 students across PK–12: Waurika Elementary School (PK–5), Waurika Middle School (grades 6–8), and Waurika High School (grades 9–12). Results are uneven across schools and subjects: elementary results are strongest, while middle-school ELA and high-school math are notable weaknesses. Attendance is a positive across the area: chronic absenteeism ranged from 4% to 5% at the schools, compared with 16% statewide. The clearest overall finding is the wide math gap: elementary scored 44% in All Grades math, compared with 25% at middle school and 12% at high school.

Waurika Elementary stands out at the top: in 2025–26, its All Grades ELA result was 36%, 10 points above the state’s 26%, and its math result was 44%, 19 points above the state’s 25%. Its third-grade results were also strong: 58% in math (25 points above state) and 34% in ELA (8 points above). At the other end, Waurika Middle had 17% in All Grades ELA, 9 points below state; ELA was below state in grades 6, 7, and 8. Waurika High was far below state in All Grades math, but its results were not low across the board: science matched the state at 30%, U.S. History was 1 point higher, and ELA was 1 point higher. All Grades results cover different grade spans, so they are not grade-matched comparisons.

Recent changes differ by school: from 2024–25 to 2025–26, elementary gained 1 point in ELA and 5 in math; middle fell 1 point in ELA and gained 2 in math; high fell 10 points in ELA and gained 2 in math. The unweighted school average moved from 30% to 27% in ELA and from 24% to 27% in math, though these averages combine different grade spans. SchoolDigger’s percentile standing rose at high school from 15 in 2023–24 to 60 in 2025–26; middle’s latest was 42, compared with 62 in 2020–21, while elementary’s latest reported percentile was 69 in 2024–25. The schools have similar context measures: in 2024–25, free/reduced lunch eligible rates were 84% at elementary, 85% at middle, and 81% at high, and student-teacher ratios ranged from 11.9 to 13.0. These figures are observations, not explanations for score differences.