Summary:
The Anderson 02 school district in South Carolina serves about 3,400 students across seven schools—four elementary, two middle, and one high school—in the Belton and Honea Path communities, and it ranks an impressive #6 out of 75 districts statewide.
For parents, the standout is Wright Elementary, the district’s smallest school, which leads every elementary subject by 10–20 percentage points—hitting 88.9% proficiency in 4th grade ELA and 81.1% in 3rd grade math, far above state averages. However, its state ranking slipped from #38 to #167 recently, so it’s worth watching. In middle school, Honea Path Middle is the consistent high performer, with 74.4% proficiency in 7th grade ELA and a perfect 100% pass rate in Algebra 1, while Belton Middle has shown the most improvement, climbing 48 spots in state rankings over two years. At the high school level, Belton Honea Path High excels in English, with 90.7% proficiency in English 1 and 92.6% in English 2—both far above state norms—though its dropout rate of 3.1% exceeds the state average.
The biggest red flag is a sharp decline in math proficiency through middle school: 6th grade scores range from 61–69%, but by 8th grade they fall to just 22–41%, with Belton Elementary and Honea Path Elementary both hovering near state averages in most subjects. Chronic absenteeism is also a hidden challenge—Marshall Primary has the highest rate at 26.9%, followed by Honea Path Middle at 25.7%, while Belton Middle is the healthiest at just 11.5%. Notably, spending doesn’t predict success: Marshall Primary spends the most per student ($18,061) yet has no test data and high absenteeism, while Wright Elementary achieves top scores with mid-range spending. Overall, this is a strong district with excellent elementary literacy and high school English, but middle school math and attendance at several schools need targeted attention.
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