Merkel Middle School
Public middle school in Merkel, Texas · Merkel ISD · Grades 6–8
Merkel Middle School serves 246 students in grades 6–8 in Merkel (Taylor County). It is one of 3 schools in Merkel ISD. By enrollment it is the 1471st largest of 1,719 public middle schools in Texas (median 639 students). With 9.3 students per full-time teacher, it has fewer students per teacher than the typical Texas middle school (14.4).
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25. Rank and medians compare all 1,719 Texas middle schools with enrollment listed on this site.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25. Students per teacher = students ÷ 26.5 full-time-equivalent teachers.
School facts
| School type | Regular School |
| Level | Middle |
| Grades | 6–8 |
| District | Merkel ISD |
| County | Taylor County |
| Area type | Rural, distant |
| School meals | Free meals for every student (Community Eligibility Provision) |
| NCES school ID | 483034003397 |
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 directory and school characteristics; area type from NCES EDGE locale codes.
Compared with the district and Texas
| This school | Merkel ISD | Texas middle schools (median) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students | 246 | 1,090 | 639 |
| Students per teacher | 9.3 | 10.5 | 14.4 |
| Free or reduced-price lunch eligible | 41.5% | 46.1% | 65.6% |
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25. District figures add up its schools. 3% of Texas middle schools have fewer students per teacher than this school (share of schools with a lower ratio). State test results aren't published here yet.
Merkel Middle School in context
Size
Merkel Middle School is the only middle school in Merkel ISD. Its 246 students are 22.6% of the district's 1,090. The 8 nearest middle schools are a median 15.8 miles away and have a median of 732 students, so Merkel Middle School is smaller than most of them.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 enrollment and school type. Share of district students = this school's students ÷ the district's students. Nearest schools by straight-line distance between NCES EDGE locations.
Grades
Its largest grade is grade 6 with 101 students, and its smallest is grade 7 with 69, against an average of 82 per grade. This year grade 8 has 25% fewer students than grade 6 (76 against 101). Each grade is a different group of students, so the gap is not a dropout or growth rate.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 membership by grade.
Students
White students are the largest group, at 66.7% of enrollment, about the same share as across Merkel ISD (69.6%). Hispanic students are next, at 28.5%. Students from 4 of the 7 race and ethnicity groups NCES reports are enrolled.
41.5% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, against 46.1% across Merkel ISD and a median of 65.6% for Texas middle schools. Under the Community Eligibility Provision, every student can eat breakfast and lunch at no charge, and families fill out no meal application.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 membership and school lunch program data. District shares weight each school by its enrollment.
Teachers
Merkel Middle School has 26.5 full-time-equivalent teachers, or 9.3 students per teacher. At the median Texas middle school ratio of 14.4, a school with 246 students would have about 17.1 teachers, so Merkel Middle School has 9.4 more.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25. Expected teachers = this school's students ÷ the median students per teacher of Texas middle schools (14.4).
Location
NCES classifies its location as rural, distant, which means it is in rural territory 5 to 25 miles from an urbanized area, or 2.5 to 10 miles from a town. The nearest other middle school is Clack Middle School, 13.2 miles away in Abilene ISD. No other middle school is within 10 miles.
Source: NCES EDGE school locations and locale codes, 2024-25. Distances are straight lines.
Students by race and ethnicity
| White | 66.7% |
| Hispanic | 28.5% |
| Two or more races | 4.1% |
| Black | 0.8% |
50% of students are girls and 50% are boys.
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 membership.
Students by grade
| Grade 6 | 101 |
| Grade 7 | 69 |
| Grade 8 | 76 |
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25 membership.
Location and contact
302 Ash, Merkel, TX 79536
Phone: (325)928-5511
Website: merkel.esc14.net
Locations: NCES EDGE. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Red: Merkel Middle School. Blue: the nearest middle schools.
Nearby middle schools
| School | District | Distance | Students | Per teacher | Free/reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clack Middle School | Abilene ISD | 13.2 mi | 693 | 14.1 | 68.1% |
| Mann Middle School | Abilene ISD | 14.8 mi | 776 | 16 | 68% |
| Hawley Middle School | Hawley ISD | 15.3 mi | 193 | 8.9 | 42% |
| Madison Middle School | Abilene ISD | 15.5 mi | 770 | 15.9 | 59.9% |
| Wylie West Junior High School | Wylie ISD | 16.1 mi | 1,038 | 16.9 | 19.7% |
| Craig Middle School | Abilene ISD | 18.1 mi | 771 | 14.3 | 69% |
| Wylie East Junior High School | Wylie ISD | 18.7 mi | 540 | 13.2 | 24.1% |
| Anson Middle School | Anson ISD | 21.1 mi | 163 | 9.4 | 56.4% |
Source: NCES CCD 2024-25. Distance in a straight line between NCES EDGE locations.
Other schools in Merkel ISD
| School | Level | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merkel Elementary School | Elementary | Pre-K–5 | 563 |
| Merkel High School | High | 9–12 | 281 |