Bussey Middle

Bussey Middle in Garland, TX, is a public school serving 753 students in grades 6-8 within the Garland Independent School District (Isd), and it faces significant challenges due to a very high level of economic disadvantage, with over 93% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch.

Bussey Middle’s overall academic performance places it in the bottom 10% of Texas middle schools, a ranking that has declined from previous years. This is a stark contrast to nearby high-performing schools like Austin Academy For Excell (93rd percentile) and Classical Center At Brandenburg Middle (77th percentile), which serve student populations with much lower poverty rates. However, Bussey Middle has a notable "bright spot" in its Algebra I program, where 86.46% of students taking the exam were proficient—a rate significantly higher than the district and state averages, and even surpassing many higher-ranked schools. This suggests a highly effective program for students accelerated into advanced math, even as foundational math proficiency for the majority of students remains very low.

Interestingly, Bussey Middle spends more per student ($10,240) than many of its peers, including high-performing B G Hudson Middle ($8,243), indicating that the challenge is not simply a lack of funding but likely relates to the concentration of poverty and the need for intensive interventions. The school is most comparable to Sam Houston Middle, which has a similar poverty rate and low overall ranking, and also shares the same strength in Algebra I. While the school has shown some positive progress for its Special Education program, it continues to struggle to serve its largest student subgroups effectively.