Summary:
The three public schools in zip code 79562 (Tuscola, TX) are all part of the highly effective Jim Ned Consolidated Independent School District, serving grades 4 through 12 with a total of about 1,119 students in a relatively affluent area where free or reduced lunch rates are low (14-18%).
The standout school is Jim Ned Middle (grades 7-8), which has earned a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger for three consecutive years and ranks in the top 5-8% of Texas middle schools. It excels in mathematics, with 100% of its 8th graders passing the Algebra I End-of-Course exam and 7th-grade math proficiency (62%) more than double the state average (29%). Jim Ned High School is also a strong performer with a consistent 4-star rating, ranking in the top 15-19% statewide, and boasts a perfect 100% graduation rate and 0% dropout rate. Jim Ned Intermediate (grades 4-6) lacks a star rating but still outperforms state averages, particularly in 5th-grade math (88% proficient) and science.
A key takeaway is the district's seamless "feeder pattern" of excellence, where students progress from strong intermediate scores to a top-tier middle school and then to a high school with perfect graduation rates. The middle school's Algebra I acceleration program gives students a head start, contributing to the high school's solid math scores. Notably, per-student spending in 2020-2021 was $12,327 at the high school versus $9,701 at the middle school, a $2,626 difference likely driven by the high school's lower student-teacher ratio (11.6:1 compared to 15.7:1 at the middle school and 16.4:1 at the intermediate). Every single test score across all three schools exceeds state averages, often by wide margins, making this a consistently high-performing district for families seeking strong academic outcomes.
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