Summary:
McCormick 01 is a small, rural South Carolina school district with just one high school, McCormick High, serving grades 9-12 with an enrollment of 192 students.
McCormick High is in the midst of a remarkable turnaround. The school jumped from a 0-star rating (215th of 235 schools) in 2023-2024 to a 3-star rating (121st of 245 schools) in 2025-2026—a gain of 94 positions in just two years. This improvement is reflected in test scores: U.S. History proficiency soared from 24% to 66.67% (a 42.67-point jump), and English 1 proficiency rose by 16.58 points to 61.91%. The school now exceeds state averages in Algebra 1 (72.97% vs. 64.58%), U.S. History (66.67% vs. 62.57%), and English 1 (61.91% vs. 60.91%). However, English 2 proficiency lags significantly at 72.35% versus the state average of 83.79%, suggesting a need for targeted literacy support in upper-level courses.
With a 10.1:1 student-teacher ratio, students benefit from small class sizes and individualized attention, but this comes at a cost: per-student spending is $30,999, reflecting the high fixed costs of operating a small rural school. The graduation rate is solid at 88.9% (above the state average of 86.7%), yet the dropout rate of 3.7% is 76% higher than the state average of 2.1%. Chronic absenteeism affects 23.3% of students (roughly 45 students), slightly above the state average. Given the small cohort size—about 48 students per grade—year-to-year fluctuations in test scores and rates can be significant, so some of the dramatic improvements may reflect this volatility. Still, the trajectory from 0 stars to 3 stars is a genuine success story, though sustaining momentum will require addressing attendance, retention, and English 2 performance.
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