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A. R. Rucker Middle

Public Grades 6-8

277^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 320 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 13% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

A. R. Rucker Middle is a public middle school located in Lancaster, South Carolina, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 513 students. The school is part of the Lancaster 01 School District, which is ranked 25 out of 75 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger. However, A. R. Rucker Middle has consistently ranked in the bottom half of South Carolina middle schools, with a 1-star rating for the past 5 years.

A. R. Rucker Middle faces significant challenges in academic performance, student engagement, and serving its high-poverty student population. The school consistently underperforms compared to the district and state in standardized test scores, with only 33.1% of 6th graders proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 56.7% in the district and 56% statewide. Additionally, the school has had high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 20.9% to 39.4% over the past few years, significantly higher than the state average. Despite spending significantly more per student ($12,257 in 2023-2024) compared to the state average, these additional resources do not seem to translate into improved academic outcomes.

Interestingly, the nearby schools in the Lancaster 01 district, such as Indian Land Middle, Indian Land Intermediate, Andrew Jackson Middle, and Buford Middle, generally outperform A. R. Rucker Middle in academic achievement, with higher test scores and lower chronic absenteeism rates. This suggests that the challenges faced by A. R. Rucker Middle may be unique to the school itself, rather than the broader district.

477

Students ?

12.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,783

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

422 Old Dixie Road
Lancaster, SC 29720

(803) 416-8555

District: Lancaster 01

Students who attend A. R. Rucker Middle usually attend:

High:

Buford High

Feeder schools for A. R. Rucker Middle:

Elementary:

Buford Elementary

Racial breakdown:

African American:

50.3%

White:

26.2%

Hispanic:

16.4%

See top rated South Carolina middle schools

Compare A. R. Rucker Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 29th percentile in 2015 → 13th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (28% vs 50% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (13th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (31% vs 22% South Carolina)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school28%

District avg54%

South Carolina avg50%

277^th of 320

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 13%▼ down 16 pts since 2015

From bottom 29% (2015) to bottom 13% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 5Middle Schools in the Lancaster 01

25^th of 75Lancaster 01 among South Carolina districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	15.4	277 of 320	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	267 of 325	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.7	267 of 325	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.9	268 of 310	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.7	289 of 311	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	29.5	226 of 315	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	32.5	209 of 303	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2017	39.4	193 of 317	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2016	39.6	197 of 303	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2015	33.3	213 of 301	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	37.3	196 of 291	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2013	36.1	195 of 276	29.3%	★★☆☆☆
2012	29.0	219 of 271	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	36.0	193 of 269	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	48.0	155 of 261	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2009	40.4	173 of 249	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2008	36.6	176 of 244	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	36.4	168 of 236	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	37.1	159 of 231	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2005	36.5	162 of 230	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	19.7	202 of 230	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	28.9	173 of 225	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	16.1	238 of 252	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	217 of 248	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.1	237 of 253	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	15.8	240 of 249	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.4	233 of 235	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	37.5	154 of 252	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.9	138 of 237	41.8%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	50.8	80 of 184	56.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	44.1	81 of 177	54.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	32.6	127 of 187	32.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	22.2	160 of 183	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	38.8	117 of 195	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	55.0	68 of 194	64.9%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2019	47.3	55 of 117	53.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	74.2	19 of 93	79.6%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	14.8	257 of 295	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.9	258 of 294	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.1	264 of 299	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.0	265 of 290	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	11.2	261 of 279	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	34.8	198 of 296	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	34.5	187 of 281	33.5%	★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2024	37.7	142 of 183	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.3	160 of 182	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	9.8	153 of 156	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	17.2	128 of 144	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.5	111 of 141	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.9	111 of 129	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	44.6	81 of 139	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	64.7	37 of 123	69.9%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	16.6	277 of 307	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.7	266 of 307	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.1	269 of 313	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.0	283 of 300	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.0	283 of 288	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	30.5	214 of 289	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.0	174 of 280	37.9%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	16.1	257 of 296	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.3	229 of 294	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.7	234 of 303	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.4	253 of 292	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.1	255 of 279	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	25.8	228 of 296	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.1	205 of 284	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	29.5	191 of 257	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.1	203 of 255	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.7	206 of 260	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.6	208 of 249	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.5	209 of 244	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.6	160 of 258	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.6	152 of 250	39.2%	★★☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Disabled (2025)57th percentile+43 vs school

English Language Learner (2019)53rd percentile+25 vs school

White (2025)26th percentile+12 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2024)22nd percentile+5 vs school

Male (2025)13th percentile~ school

Female (2025)13th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)10th percentile-4 vs school

African American (2025)6th percentile-8 vs school

Hispanic (2025)2nd percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 296%+22 vs state

English Language Arts38%-19 vs state

Science27%-21 vs state

Mathematics15%-21 vs state

1.0

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What people are saying

by a teacher
Saturday, November 18, 2017

This school has poor support for it's teachers. Most of the teachers are highly qualified and educated, but the administration rarely trusts their judgement, including teachers who have been recognized by the district as teacher of the year. The administration too often want to please the parents because it fears lawsuits that it loses the trust and faith from the teachers. Close Quote

Schools Near A. R. Rucker Middle

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				SC READY English Language Arts (2025)				SC READY Mathematics (2025)				SC READY Science (2025)	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (2025)	EOCEP English 2 (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SC READY English Language Arts 5th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 6th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 7th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 8th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 End of Course	EOCEP English 2 End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
A. R. Rucker Middle	Public	6-8	422 Old Dixie Road	Lancaster	29720	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 416-8555	477	37	12.7		125 (26.2%)	240 (50.3%)	78 (16.4%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (6.3%)	15.4	277^th of 320 public middle schools	13.4%		18.6	267^th of 325 public middle schools	17.8%	10		33.1	41.9	39.1		20.3	12.8	10.9	27.2	96.2		$13,783	$1,276	$309	$1,585	$9,947	$2,250	$12,198
South Middle	Public	6-8	1551 Billings Drive	Lancaster	29720	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 283-8416	439	38	11.5		99 (22.6%)	219 (49.9%)	99 (22.6%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.1%)	14.3	283^rd of 320 public middle schools	11.6%		11.9	299^th of 325 public middle schools	8.0%	16		24.8	43.5	26.6		20.3	21.2	10.5	25.1	94.1		$13,646	$933	$426	$1,359	$10,178	$2,108	$12,286
Buford Middle	Public	6-8	1890 North Rocky River Road	Lancaster	29720	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 285-8473	374	29	12.8		292 (78.1%)	12 (3.2%)	55 (14.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (3.7%)	59.4	113^th of 320 public middle schools	64.7%		70.4	77^th of 325 public middle schools	76.3%	36		53.4	63.2	45.6		51.2	42.1	48.2	38.0	100.0		$14,477	$399	$124	$523	$11,964	$1,990	$13,954
Andrew Jackson Middle	Public	6-8	6865 Kershaw Camden Highway	Kershaw	29067	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 475-6021	480	32	14.9		304 (63.3%)	120 (25.0%)	12 (2.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (9.0%)	49.9	145^th of 320 public middle schools	54.7%		54.7	133^rd of 325 public middle schools	59.1%	12		45.2	63.4	45.7		43.6	35.5	35.8	39.7	100.0		$13,329	$310	$114	$424	$10,659	$2,246	$12,905
Lewisville Middle	Public	6-8	3595 Lancaster Highway	Richburg	29729	Chester County	Chester 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 789-5858	295	22	13.4		162 (54.9%)	81 (27.5%)	32 (10.8%)	3 (1.0%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.7%)	14 (4.7%)	50.5	141^st of 320 public middle schools	55.9%		49.4	152^nd of 325 public middle schools	53.2%	11		60.0	58.2	53.7		40.0	28.5	17.6	54.1	96.6		$13,663	$2,170	$769	$2,939	$8,297	$2,427	$10,724
Indian Land Middle	Public	7-8	8361 Charlotte Highway	Indian Land	29707	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 578-2500	1,102	64	17.2		580 (52.6%)	129 (11.7%)	246 (22.3%)	98 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	48 (4.4%)	82.4	50^th of 320 public middle schools	84.4%		82.9	52^nd of 325 public middle schools	84.0%	2			73.8	66.1			54.6	41.6		94.5	100.0	$11,377	$335	$142	$477	$8,830	$2,070	$10,900
Indian Land Intermediate	Public	5-6	8361 Charlotte Highway	Indian Land	29707	Lancaster County	Lancaster 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 547-3600	1,181	72	16.4		703 (59.5%)	140 (11.9%)	138 (11.7%)	120 (10.2%)	7 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	73 (6.2%)								(n/a)	81.0	74.5			76.8	72.8			78.5			$10,670	$259	$128	$387	$8,867	$1,416	$10,283
Castle Heights Middle	Public	6-8	2382 Firetower Road	Rock Hill	29730	York County	York 03	No	No	No	No	(803) 981-1400	669	48	13.9		257 (38.4%)	205 (30.6%)	104 (15.5%)	12 (1.8%)	26 (3.9%)	1 (0.1%)	64 (9.6%)	42.2	177^th of 320 public middle schools	44.7%		38.3	191^st of 325 public middle schools	41.2%	14		59.2	51.8	49.3		37.4	22.5	13.6	48.1	91.7		$15,533	$610	$770	$1,380	$12,358	$1,795	$14,153
New Heights Middle	Public	6-8	5738 Highway 151	Jefferson	29718	Chesterfield County	Chesterfield 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 658-6830	457	28	16.3		143 (31.3%)	171 (37.4%)	92 (20.1%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (10.7%)	14.6	280^th of 320 public middle schools	12.5%		11.3	302^nd of 325 public middle schools	7.1%	22		38.0	38.5	36.3		16.8	11.2	8.3	32.8			$12,791	$925	$1,132	$2,057	$8,919	$1,815	$10,734

Frequently Asked Questions about A. R. Rucker Middle

What is the racial makeup of A. R. Rucker Middle?

Students at A. R. Rucker Middle are 50% African American, 26% White, 16% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races.

What district is A. R. Rucker Middle in?

Lancaster 01

Is A. R. Rucker Middle a good school?

A. R. Rucker Middle ranks in the bottom 13.4% of South Carolina middle schools.

What high school do graduates of A. R. Rucker Middle attend?

Students who attend A. R. Rucker Middle usually go on to attend Buford High

How many students attend A. R. Rucker Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 477 students attended A. R. Rucker Middle.

Rate A. R. Rucker Middle!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the South Carolina Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.