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Middle Schools in Charleston 01

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At a glance

DistrictCharleston 0121^st of 75 South Carolina districtsFull district overview →

Schools

8,632

Students

5-star schools

Top rankedBuist Academy1^st of 335 South Carolina middle schools

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Biggest riser

Haut Gap Middle up 40 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Simmons Pinckney Middle 7.6 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

3★

1★

0★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

Compare South Carolina districts →See the top-ranked South Carolina schools →

Summary:

The Charleston 01 school district contains 12 middle schools serving grades 6-8 (with one exception), spread across communities ranging from Mount Pleasant to North Charleston, and the district itself ranks in the 72nd percentile statewide with a 4-star rating.

For parents, the most important takeaway is that this district offers some of the best middle schools in South Carolina, but also some of the most challenged. Buist Academy is the standout, ranking #1 in the state with near-universal proficiency (94-99% in most subjects) and the lowest chronic absenteeism rate at 5.9%. Thomas C. Cario Middle (#7), Moultrie Middle (#15), and Laing Middle (#16) round out an elite top tier, all with ELA proficiency around 80% or higher and chronic absenteeism near 12%. On the other end, Simmons Pinckney Middle ranks #333 out of 335 schools statewide, with only 8.9% math proficiency and a staggering 60.3% chronic absenteeism rate. Morningside Middle (#331) and Northwoods Middle (#320) face similar struggles. Notably, the highest-spending schools (Simmons Pinckney at $36,562/student) are the lowest-performing, while top schools like Moultrie spend the least ($16,249), suggesting money alone doesn't solve the challenges these schools face.

There is good news: Haut Gap Middle jumped from #116 to #65 in state rankings over two years, improving math proficiency by 10-18 percentage points, and Camp Road Middle moved from #43 to #26. Also, all 12 schools exceed the state average on the Algebra 1 EOCEP exam, with 6 schools achieving 100% pass rates. However, the geographic divide is stark: Mount Pleasant schools average a #16 state rank, while North Charleston schools average around #300. Chronic absenteeism is the strongest predictor of performance—schools with rates under 15% rank in the top 6% statewide, while those above 25% rank in the bottom 8%. For parents, this means school choice within the district matters enormously, and attendance is a critical factor in academic success.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SC READY English Language Arts (2026)			SC READY Mathematics (2026)				SC READY Science (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2024)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SC READY English Language Arts 6th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 7th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 8th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
Morningside Middle	Public	6-8	1999 Singley Lane	North Charleston	29405	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 745-2000	552	50	11.1	100.0%	24 (4.3%)	267 (48.4%)	242 (43.8%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	13 (2.4%)	4.9	331^st of 335 public middle schools	1.2%		6.9	313^th of 320 public middle schools	2.2%	18	21.6	28.4	25.4		12.2	9.5	15.2	19.5	$22,401	$5,771	$1,776	$7,548	$11,269	$3,584	$14,853
C. E. Williams Middle School for Creative and Scientific Art	Public, Magnet	6-8	3090 Sanders Road	Charleston	29414	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 763-1529	1,299	95	13.7	58.8%	552 (42.5%)	478 (36.8%)	142 (10.9%)	31 (2.4%)	1 (0.1%)	5 (0.4%)	90 (6.9%)	49.6	159^th of 335 public middle schools	52.5%		51.7	136^th of 320 public middle schools	57.5%	23	58.7	54.2	50.5		44.9	37.2	36.6	52.8	$29,210	$3,736	$1,839	$5,574	$18,192	$5,444	$23,636
Thomas C. Cario Middle	Public	6-8	3500 Thomas Cario Boulevard	Mount Pleasant	29466	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 856-4595	1,105	65	17.0	14.2%	920 (83.3%)	48 (4.3%)	71 (6.4%)	23 (2.1%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (3.7%)	97.9	7^th of 335 public middle schools	97.9%		97.9	6^th of 320 public middle schools	98.1%	1	90.1	88.7	84.2		84.2	81.5	76.4	81.5	$16,294	$3,086	$1,033	$4,119	$9,798	$2,377	$12,175
Northwoods Middle	Public	6-8	7763 Northside Drive	North Charleston	29420	Dorchester County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 764-2212	708	49	14.4	100.0%	46 (6.5%)	280 (39.5%)	334 (47.2%)	5 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	6 (0.8%)	35 (4.9%)	8.8	320^th of 335 public middle schools	4.5%		7.6	311^th of 320 public middle schools	2.8%	9	27.7	36.0	34.8		14.0	14.7	22.4	21.7	$21,784	$3,944	$3,380	$7,324	$10,426	$4,034	$14,461
Haut Gap Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	1861 Bohicket Road	Johns Island	29449	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 559-6418	412	33	12.4	100.0%	166 (40.3%)	107 (26.0%)	114 (27.7%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.6%)	77.9	65^th of 335 public middle schools	80.6%		62.7	105^th of 320 public middle schools	67.2%	40	69.2	71.1	59.6		56.0	62.2	52.7	61.4	$22,721	$4,076	$1,699	$5,774	$12,734	$4,212	$16,946
Laing Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	2705 Bulrush Basket Lane	Mount Pleasant	29466	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 849-2809	986	61	16.2	20.5%	786 (79.7%)	113 (11.5%)	40 (4.1%)	20 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	25 (2.5%)	96.5	16^th of 335 public middle schools	95.2%		96.4	16^th of 320 public middle schools	95.0%		85.6	82.8	83.0		73.3	73.9	76.3	77.9	$17,706	$3,232	$1,388	$4,619	$10,596	$2,491	$13,087
Moultrie Middle	Public	6-8	645 Coleman Boulevard	Mount Pleasant	29464	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 849-2819	1,130	65	17.4	20.1%	969 (85.8%)	67 (5.9%)	50 (4.4%)	23 (2.0%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (1.7%)	96.9	15^th of 335 public middle schools	95.5%		97.5	8^th of 320 public middle schools	97.5%	7	84.0	81.5	82.9		82.0	74.2	79.3	80.1	$16,249	$2,911	$1,141	$4,052	$9,964	$2,233	$12,196
Buist Academy	Public, Magnet	3-8	103 Calhoun Street	Charleston	29401	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 724-7750	521	37	14.0	21.4%	395 (75.8%)	50 (9.6%)	24 (4.6%)	30 (5.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	21 (4.0%)	99.6	1^st of 335 public middle schools	99.7%		99.8	2^nd of 320 public middle schools	99.4%	1	99.0		94.8	97.4			89.6	98.9	$18,527	$3,273	$1,393	$4,665	$10,917	$2,944	$13,862
Jerry Zucker Middle School of Science	Public, Magnet	6-8	6401 Dorchester Road	North Charleston	29418	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 767-8383	513	58	8.8	100.0%	31 (6.0%)	215 (41.9%)	247 (48.1%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.3%)	15.1	302^nd of 335 public middle schools	9.9%		15.2	278^th of 320 public middle schools	13.1%	24	25.0	34.7	37.0		26.2	26.5	28.1	24.3	$21,951	$4,384	$1,544	$5,928	$12,628	$3,395	$16,023
Simmons Pinckney Middle	Public	6-8	244 President Street	Charleston	29403	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 724-7789	190	25	7.6	100.0%	2 (1.1%)	177 (93.2%)	5 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (3.2%)	4.6	333^rd of 335 public middle schools	0.6%		6.3	317^th of 320 public middle schools	0.9%	16	25.0	27.2	20.6		8.9	9.4	17.3	16.0	$36,562	$4,770	$1,679	$6,450	$23,471	$6,641	$30,112
Deer Park Middle	Public	6-8	2263 Otranto Road	North Charleston	29406	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 990-5200	315	27	11.8	100.0%	36 (11.4%)	149 (47.3%)	105 (33.3%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (7.3%)	23.9	257^th of 335 public middle schools	23.3%		15.7	273^rd of 320 public middle schools	14.7%	16	39.1	41.5	56.0		23.8	21.7	30.3	33.4	$24,858	$4,043	$1,749	$5,792	$14,744	$4,322	$19,066
Camp Road Middle	Public	6-8	1825 Camp Road	Charleston	29412	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 762-2784	901	53	16.9	34.2%	681 (75.6%)	146 (16.2%)	27 (3.0%)	9 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	36 (4.0%)	90.6	26^th of 335 public middle schools	92.2%		89.6	30^th of 320 public middle schools	90.6%	4	78.2	75.5	74.7		64.8	60.6	71.3	69.1	$17,753	$3,505	$1,295	$4,799	$9,968	$2,986	$12,954
Baptist Hill Middle	Public	6-8	5117 Baptist Hill Road	Hollywood	29449	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(843) 889-2276	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
School Public Charter School District	1.31 mi	60	32^nd
Berkeley 01	2.2 mi	46	31^st
Dorchester 02	6.88 mi	25	20^th
Charter Institute at Erskine	8.99 mi	33	40^th
Limestone Charters Association	12.98 mi	17	25^th

See the top SC South Carolina districts

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the South Carolina Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.