Middle Schools in Laurens 55

The Laurens 55 school district in South Carolina serves two middle schools—Laurens Middle and Sanders Middle—covering grades 6 through 8, with a combined enrollment of roughly 623 students in a district that ranks in the bottom 20% statewide.

If you are comparing the two schools, Laurens Middle is the clear academic leader. It outperforms Sanders Middle in nearly every subject and grade level, with ELA proficiency ranging from 42.1% to 47.8% across grades, compared to Sanders’ 30.7% to 34.5%. Math scores are a district-wide concern, but Laurens still posts numbers roughly 7 to 14 points higher than Sanders—for example, 7th-grade math at Laurens is 26.9% versus just 12.8% at Sanders. Laurens also shines in Algebra 1, achieving a perfect 100% proficiency rate on the EOCEP, far above the district’s 59.55% and the state’s 73.95%. Meanwhile, Sanders Middle spends significantly more per student ($18,411 vs. $14,605) and has a better student-teacher ratio (8.3:1 vs. 11.3:1), yet its results are much lower—a spending paradox that raises questions about resource effectiveness.

Chronic absenteeism is another differentiator: Sanders Middle has a 22.6% rate, above the state average of 22.3%, while Laurens Middle sits at a healthier 17.9%. One notable exception to the pattern is 6th-grade science, where Sanders (33.9%) actually beats Laurens (23.6%), though both remain well below the state’s 51.9%. Year-over-year, Laurens shows strong ELA gains across all grades, but math and science dipped; Sanders saw declines in 8th-grade ELA and 6th-grade math. For parents, the takeaway is that Laurens Middle offers a stronger overall academic experience, especially in advanced math, while Sanders Middle—despite higher funding—struggles with both performance and attendance, making it a school that may need closer scrutiny.