Priority Charter Schools Temple, Temple TX

Original Research by School Decision on Priority Charter Schools Temple

Priority Charter Schools Temple sits on Airport Road in Temple, Texas, and operates as a PK through 12 alternative charter school. Understanding what that classification means is the starting point for any parent considering this campus. Alternative schools in Texas typically serve students who need a different environment from a traditional setting, whether because of attendance challenges, credit recovery needs, learning differences, or other circumstances. The school is small across all grade levels, with enrollment spread thinly from pre-K through twelfth grade.

Temple itself is one of Central Texas's fastest-growing cities, publicly reported as having seen among the highest population growth rates of any city in the region between 2020 and 2023. That growth has pushed westward toward Belton Lake, with new housing developments expanding the city well beyond its historic downtown core. The downtown anchors civic life with the Santa Fe Depot, the Railroad and Heritage Museum, the Temple Public Library, and a walkable restaurant and retail district. Healthcare is the dominant economic engine, with Baylor Scott and White Health and the Olin E. Teague Veterans' Medical Center among the largest employers, alongside major distribution operations anchored by McLane Company and H-E-B. The housing market is modestly priced relative to both the Texas state median and the national median, and has seen a slight softening year over year.

The student body is racially mixed, with white, Hispanic, and Black students each representing meaningful shares of enrollment. A substantial portion of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on English learners and students with IEPs was not available in the data provided.

State assessment results from the most recent school year are available for grades three through eight in math and reading, and for grades five and eight in science and social studies. The picture is uneven. Reading tends to run stronger than math: fourth and eighth grade reading results were relatively solid, and seventh grade reading landed around half of tested students reaching proficiency. Math proficiency is considerably lower across most grades, with sixth and eighth grade math results particularly low, and fourth grade math being the clearest bright spot. Science results are split, with fifth grade science quite low and eighth grade science closer to the state norm. Eighth grade social studies was low. Overall, when viewed against districts in Bell County, the school's proficiency index sits below the midpoint of that comparison set. At the masters performance level, which represents the highest tier on Texas's STAAR scale, results across subjects are quite thin. Parents will want to ask the school directly what academic supports are in place and how the school addresses gaps, particularly in math.

One important interpretive note: this is classified as an alternative school, and tested group sizes are small at each grade level. That means a single student's result can visibly move a grade-level rate in either direction, and state averages are built from far larger populations. Direct comparisons to traditional schools are imperfect, and the data here reflects only the most recent school year with no multi-year trend available for context.

No graduation rate data was available in the data provided. Given the thin high school enrollment reflected in the grade-level breakdown, a parent considering this school for a high school student would be well served to ask specifically about graduation outcomes, course access, and what postsecondary pathways the school supports.

The parent charter organization, Priority Charter Schools, has undergone some footprint changes in recent years. It publicly reported closing campuses in Cedar Park and Georgetown and now operates campuses in Temple, Killeen, and Copperas Cove. A new Killeen campus opened in 2023 and is adding grade levels progressively. For Temple families, the school remains open and serving the full PK-12 span.

No information on programs, staffing ratios, attendance rates, or specific curriculum models was available in the data provided. Those gaps are worth exploring directly with the school before enrollment.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

Not publicly reportedCohort of 5 students · Class of 2021

The federal source does not publish a graduation rate for cohorts this small. The cohort size is shown for context.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

1,779 schools plotted. 59 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 318%

School 18% · District 18%

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 458%

School 58% · District 43% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 538%

School 38% · District 31% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 3 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 66%

School 6% · District 8% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 715%

School 15% · District 13% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 814%

School 14% · District 11% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 41% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 483%

School 83% · District 43% · ▲ 40 pts above district

▲ 34 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 53% · ▲ 1 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 639%

School 39% · District 47% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 47% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 857%

School 57% · District 55% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Science

Grade 515%

School 15% · District 16% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 45% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 814%

School 14% · District 10% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

This schoolPRIORITY CHARTER SCHOOLS, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income33%Higher-income40%7 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income100%Higher-income67%33 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income43%Higher-income36%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income67%Higher-income30%37 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income67%Higher-income44%23 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income17%Higher-income20%3 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income80%Higher-income50%30 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income14%Higher-income0%14 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income33%Higher-income0%33 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income17%Higher-income11%6 pp gap