Summary:
The city of Easley, South Carolina is home to 9 elementary schools, serving grades ranging from PK-8 across a mix of public and public charter schools. The data reveals stark differences in academic performance between the top-performing schools, such as Concrete Primary and Forest Acres Elementary, and the lower-performing schools like West End Elementary and Crosswell Elementary.
The top-performing schools, which are part of the highly-ranked Anderson 01 and Pickens 01 school districts, have significantly higher proficiency rates on state assessments, with 3rd-5th grade ELA proficiency ranging from 66.3% to 87.2% and Math proficiency from 51.8% to 71.5%. In contrast, some schools struggle, with proficiency rates well below the state and district averages. The data also suggests a correlation between higher per-student spending and stronger academic outcomes, though this is not a perfect relationship.
Across the schools, a concerning trend is the uniformly high chronic absenteeism rate of 22.5%, which likely impacts student learning and achievement. Additionally, the wide range in free/reduced lunch rates, from less than 50% to 100%, highlights significant socioeconomic differences between the school populations that may contribute to the performance gaps observed. The data for Lakes and Bridges Charter School also raises questions about the effectiveness of the charter school model in this context, as it significantly underperforms the traditional public schools.
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