Best High Schools in Irmo, SC

Irmo, South Carolina, is home to one public high school, Dutch Fork High, which serves grades 9 through 12 and enrolls approximately 1,703 students as part of the highly regarded Lexington 05 school district, ranked 13th out of 75 districts in the state.

For parents, Dutch Fork High is a solid, above-average school that has consistently earned a 4-star rating over the past three years. Its graduation rate of 88.5% beats the state average by nearly two points, and its chronic absenteeism rate of 14.8% is dramatically lower than the state’s 22.3%, which is a strong positive sign for student engagement. The school also excels in English 2, where 92.85% of students are proficient, far outpacing the state. However, there are some concerns. The school’s state ranking has slipped from the 84th percentile to the 73rd percentile over three years, suggesting other schools are improving faster. Most notably, Algebra 1 proficiency sits at just 64.84%, which is 9 points below the state average and a striking 15 points below the district average. Additionally, English 1 proficiency dropped by 10 points in a single year, from 73.97% to 63.88%, and U.S. History scores also declined by over 7 points.

While Dutch Fork High outperforms the state on most key metrics, it consistently trails its own district in graduation rate, dropout rate, and most test subjects, indicating that Lexington 05 as a whole is exceptionally strong. With a favorable student-teacher ratio of 13.9:1 and per-student spending of $14,365, the school is well-resourced. The main takeaway is that Dutch Fork is a reliable, above-average choice with strong attendance and English outcomes, but parents should be aware of the declining math and early English scores, which may warrant attention and targeted support.