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Best Alternative Schools in Columbia, SC

At a glance

Schools

8,875

Students

Districts

◉

Smallest classes

SCDJJ Evaluation and Detention Center 11.1 students per teacher

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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 ()				Ranking ()				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 1 (2025)	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution (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 ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	SchoolDigger Rating ()	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	Rank Change from Previous Year	SC READY English Language Arts 3rd Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 4th Grade	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 3rd Grade	SC READY Mathematics 4th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 4th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 End of Course	EOCEP English 1 End of Course	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution 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
Pendergrass Fairwold School	Public, Alternative	K-12	5935 Token Street	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 735-3435	46	14	3.2		4 (8.7%)	37 (80.4%)	3 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (4.3%)								(n/a)																			$68,847	$4,265	$1,123	$5,389	$58,171	$5,288	$63,459
SCDJJ Evaluation and Detention Center	Public, Alternative	4-12	5000 Broad River Road	Columbia	29212	Richland County	Dept of Juvenile Justice	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 896-9037	417	38	11.1		82 (19.7%)	316 (75.8%)	15 (3.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)								(n/a)
Carolus Online Academy	Public, Virtual, Charter, Alternative	K-12	101 Westpark Boulevard Suite C	Columbia	29210	Lexington County	School Public Charter School District	Yes	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(866) 968-7512	1,786	64	27.9		846 (47.4%)	633 (35.4%)	155 (8.7%)	4 (0.2%)	19 (1.1%)	7 (0.4%)	122 (6.8%)								(n/a)	23.8	26.5	24.6	34.9	30.4	26.9	9.5	8.3	4.0	4.5	3.2	1.3	9.1	14.9	14.4	21.2	29.5	77.2	$9,912	$67	$173	$240	$2,607	$7,064	$9,671
School Connections Academy	Public, Virtual, Charter, Alternative	K-12	201 Executive Center Drive Sui	Columbia	29210	Lexington County	Charter Institute at Erskine	Yes	No	Yes	No	(803) 212-4712	6,152	268	22.9		3,858 (62.7%)	1,255 (20.4%)	526 (8.6%)	33 (0.5%)	26 (0.4%)	8 (0.1%)	446 (7.2%)								(n/a)	44.8	46.0	55.4	59.0	57.4	60.4	23.2	22.5	20.3	17.4	20.8	17.9	33.4	38.9	42.5	53.3	49.1	87.4	$8,987	$494	$01	$494	$3,154	$5,338	$8,492
Clear Dot Charter School	Public, Charter, Alternative	PK, KG-11	2015 Marion Street	Columbia	29201	Richland County	Charter Institute at Erskine	Yes	No	No	Yes	(803) 567-3075	474	42	11.2		55 (11.6%)	383 (80.8%)	15 (3.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.2%)								(n/a)	46.1	24.5	40.0	39.5	37.0	26.9	25.6	14.3	27.5	5.3	11.1	7.7	18.3	15.8		9.5	45.8	60.0	$12,810	$2,409	$1,018	$3,427	$6,273	$3,110	$9,383

Cities Near Columbia

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Cayce	2.86 mi	3	189^th
West Columbia	2.92 mi	17	102^nd
Hopkins	8.05 mi	5	176^th
Lexington	8.67 mi	23	43^rd
Gaston	11.76 mi	2	219^th

See the top SC South Carolina cities

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.