Summary:
The city of Loris, South Carolina, is served by four schools in the Horry 01 district, educating roughly 3,000 students across two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. While the district itself is highly rated, ranking 9th out of 75 in the state, individual school performance varies dramatically, creating a system with clear standouts and areas of concern.
Daisy Elementary is the clear success story, ranking in the 72nd percentile statewide and exceeding district averages in nearly every subject. Its 3rd-grade math proficiency (77.1%) is nearly 30 points higher than Loris Elementary (48.2%), despite similar resources. In fact, Daisy achieves these results with the lowest per-student spending in the city. In contrast, Loris Middle is the most troubling, ranking in the 29th percentile with critically low math scores—only about 1 in 4 students is proficient. This creates a significant feeder problem for Loris High, which shows a paradox: strong scores on Algebra 1 and English 2 end-of-course exams, but weak performance in English 1 and U.S. History, alongside a 32.5% chronic absenteeism rate—the highest in the city.
Chronic absenteeism is a clear theme, correlating strongly with achievement. Daisy Elementary has the lowest rate (19.1%) and the highest performance, while Loris Middle (24.7%) and Loris High (32.5%) struggle with engagement. The good news is that several schools are on upward trajectories. Loris Middle improved across all subjects in the latest data, and Daisy Elementary has climbed from the 51st to the 72nd percentile in two years. For parents, the key takeaway is that while the district is strong, school choice matters greatly in Loris. Daisy Elementary is a model of efficiency and success, while the secondary schools face significant challenges in math and attendance that require urgent attention.
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