Stafford Middle School students and families have a concrete reason to celebrate heading into the new school year: the campus earned a B rating on the 2026 Texas Education Agency accountability system, the district announced on Wednesday, Aug. 12.

The rating marks upward momentum for the roughly 3,500-student Stafford Municipal School District, which earned an overall score of 85 and a B rating districtwide. That's a seven-point jump from the prior year, according to the district's announcement on X.

Stafford MSD described the results as reflecting significant growth happening across the district.

The school's official account on X credited students, staff and the broader Spartan community for the achievement. Superintendent Dr. Adam Stephens, who took the helm in April, shared the middle school's announcement on his own social media account the same day.

What the rating means

Texas grades every public school campus and district on an A-through-F scale created by the Legislature in 2017. The system weighs three areas: Student Achievement (STAAR scores, graduation rates and college/career/military readiness), School Progress (academic growth) and Closing the Gaps (equity across student groups). The higher of a school's achievement or progress score counts for 70% of the overall grade, with Closing the Gaps making up the remaining 30%.

A B rating is considered acceptable under state law.

Only campuses receiving five consecutive D or F ratings trigger mandatory state intervention.

Building on recent gains

The B rating follows a pattern of improvement at Stafford MSD. The district reported notable STAAR score gains for spring 2024, with all campuses outperforming neighboring schools. The district's college, career and military readiness rate stood at 94% as of October 2024, 18 percentage points above the state average of 76%.

Stafford STEM Magnet Academy, one of the district's elementary campuses, ranked fifth among top Houston-area elementary schools in the 2024-25 Children at Risk rankings.

What's next for families

TEA is scheduled to release the full 2026 A-F ratings for all Texas campuses publicly on Friday, Aug. 14, at txschools.gov. Families will be able to view detailed domain scores for Stafford Middle School and every other campus statewide at that time.

The SMSD Board of Trustees has a joint budget and tax adoption meeting scheduled for Monday, Aug. 24, at the Leonard Scarcella Administration Building, 1633 Staffordshire Road in Stafford.