Summary:
In zip code 76710, there is one middle school, Tennyson Middle, serving grades 6 through 8 in Waco, Texas, as part of the Waco Independent School District (Isd).
Tennyson Middle has a total enrollment of 963 students and faces significant academic challenges, particularly in math. The school shows a striking "math paradox": it excels in advanced Algebra I, with 71.31% of students proficient in the 2025-2026 school year—far above the state average of 54.03%—yet struggles profoundly in 7th-grade math, where only 2.23% of students met proficiency, compared to the state average of around 30%. Reading is a relative strength, with 8th-grade reading proficiency reaching 48.98%, and the school consistently outperforms its district averages in most subjects. However, its overall state ranking has declined from the 31st percentile to the 17th percentile, indicating that other schools are improving faster. The school serves a high-poverty population, with 81.93% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and has a student-teacher ratio of 15.5:1. Its dropout rate of 1.3% is half the district's rate of 2.6%, a positive sign.
For parents, Tennyson Middle offers a strong advanced math program and solid reading instruction, but the extremely low 7th-grade math scores are a major concern. The school's performance is notably better than the Waco Independent School District (Isd) average, which ranks in the bottom 5% of Texas districts. The 8th-grade "bounce" in test scores across subjects suggests students may improve as they progress, but the persistent weakness in 7th-grade math requires attention. Overall, this is a school with clear strengths and weaknesses, set in a challenging district context.
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