Best Public Schools in Zip Code 76705

The 10 public schools in zip code 76705, serving Waco, Texas, are spread across four districts—La Vega Independent School District (Isd), Connally Independent School District (Isd), Gholson Independent School District (Isd), and Hallsburg Independent School District (Isd)—and face a shared challenge of high economic disadvantage, with an average free/reduced lunch rate of about 84%.

The standout school is Gholson Independent School District (Isd), an alternative school that consistently outperforms state averages in reading and math despite a 72.35% free/reduced lunch rate, suggesting a highly effective model. In contrast, Connally Elementary ranks in the 0th percentile statewide, with only 10.45% of 5th graders proficient in math versus the state’s 47.38%. La Vega Pri Phil Bancale Campus has the highest economic need at 98.65% free/reduced lunch, while Connally High School spends the most per student ($13,066) but ranks in the 28th percentile, showing that spending alone doesn’t guarantee success. La Vega High School and Connally High have similar graduation rates (91.8% and 91.1%), but La Vega High has a higher dropout rate (1.9% vs. 0.6%).

A critical finding is a universal math crisis, with every school falling below state averages in all tested grades—for instance, 7th-grade math at La Vega J H George Dixon Campus was just 9.76% proficient (state: 29.41%). There’s also a performance dip from early to upper elementary, as seen at Hallsburg School, where 3rd-grade math was above average (53.33%) but 5th-grade math plummeted to 7.69%. The Gholson anomaly proves that personalized, smaller environments can overcome poverty, while the contrast between Connally’s struggling elementary and its stronger high school suggests a pipeline breakdown. Overall, how money is spent matters more than how much, and a coordinated math strategy is urgently needed across all districts.