Summary:
The city of Estill, South Carolina, is served by two public schools within the Hampton school district, which together educate roughly 350 students across grades PK-8 in a small, rural community setting.
For parents, the most important takeaway is that Estill Elementary is the stronger and more promising of the two schools. It has shown remarkable improvement, jumping from the 12th to the 42nd percentile in state rankings over the past three years, and it holds a 2-star rating compared to Estill Middle’s 1-star rating. In particular, 4th-grade English Language Arts proficiency at the elementary school (60%) exceeds both district and state averages, making it a clear bright spot. However, math and science scores remain well below state norms, with only 17.1% of 4th graders proficient in math and just 20% proficient in science. Chronic absenteeism is also a concern, affecting 26.7% of elementary students—higher than the state average of 22.3%.
In contrast, Estill Middle has remained stuck in the bottom quarter of state rankings for years. Its one notable strength is 7th-grade math, where 40.5% of students are proficient—nearly matching the state average and far exceeding the school’s other grade levels, which range from 14.3% to 22.2%. This suggests a possible standout teacher or unique program in that grade. Yet the transition to middle school is a clear point of struggle: 6th-grade ELA proficiency drops to just 20%, and science proficiency is critically low at 11.4% versus a 51.9% state average. Despite spending a high $17,660 per student, the middle school’s results do not reflect that investment, pointing to a need for strategic resource reallocation rather than additional funding.
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