Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Whale Branch Middle

Public Grades 6-8

290^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 320 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 9% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

Whale Branch Middle is a public middle school located in Seabrook, South Carolina, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 226 students. The school is part of the Beaufort 01 school district, which is ranked 28 out of 75 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Whale Branch Middle consistently underperforms compared to the Beaufort 01 district and the state of South Carolina in standardized test scores across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the percentage of students proficient or better in ELA ranged from 34.2% to 40.7%, while the district and state scores were around 55%. In mathematics, the proficiency rates were even lower, ranging from 9.5% to 16.5%, compared to the district and state scores around 30-40%. Additionally, Whale Branch Middle has significantly higher chronic absenteeism rates compared to the state average, with a rate of 22.5% in the 2023-2024 school year, while the state average was around 18-20%.

Whale Branch Middle's performance is significantly lower than the nearby Beaufort Middle and Lady's Island Middle schools, which are also part of the Beaufort 01 district. These schools consistently outperform Whale Branch Middle in academic achievement, with higher proficiency rates in ELA, mathematics, and science. Despite Whale Branch Middle's relatively low student-teacher ratio of 6.6 in the 2023-2024 school year, this does not seem to translate into improved academic outcomes for the students, who come from a high concentration of low-income families with a 100% free and reduced lunch rate.

243

Students ?

7.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$33,250

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2009 Trask Parkway
Seabrook, SC 29940

(843) 466-3000

District: Beaufort 01

Students who attend Whale Branch Middle usually attend:

High:

Whale Branch Early College High

Feeder schools for Whale Branch Middle:

Elementary:

Whale Branch Elementary

Racial breakdown:

African American:

67.5%

Hispanic:

20.6%

Two or more races:

6.6%

See top rated South Carolina middle schools

Compare Whale Branch Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 16th percentile in 2015 → 9th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 8 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (24% vs 46% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (9th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 7 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school24%

District avg46%

South Carolina avg46%

290^th of 320

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 9%▼ down 7 pts since 2015

From bottom 16% (2015) to bottom 9% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 6Middle Schools in the Beaufort 01

28^th of 75Beaufort 01 among South Carolina districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	12.6	290 of 320	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.4	283 of 325	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.5	294 of 325	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	19.3	243 of 310	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.3	259 of 311	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.1	271 of 315	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.2	231 of 303	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	31.5	223 of 317	29.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	26.6	231 of 303	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	21.0	252 of 301	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	19.5	249 of 291	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	31.2	211 of 276	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	27.0	223 of 271	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	30.6	208 of 269	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	32.8	203 of 261	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	28.7	201 of 249	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	16.5	223 of 244	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	11.1	222 of 236	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	19.0	200 of 231	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	23.8	191 of 230	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	29.2	178 of 230	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	11.7	207 of 225	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	31.3	187 of 252	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	36.5	160 of 248	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.2	173 of 253	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.6	156 of 249	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.4	146 of 235	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	32.7	181 of 252	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	52.0	95 of 237	59.9%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2023	24.6	155 of 187	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	11.8	271 of 295	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	19.8	241 of 294	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.0	278 of 299	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.6	229 of 290	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.6	232 of 279	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.9	248 of 296	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.1	184 of 281	34.5%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	17.8	272 of 307	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.8	265 of 307	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.5	286 of 313	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	24.6	229 of 300	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.0	227 of 288	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.9	241 of 289	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	37.8	176 of 280	37.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	12.9	269 of 296	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.6	264 of 294	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.8	259 of 303	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.1	249 of 292	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.7	244 of 279	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.2	255 of 296	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	16.9	248 of 284	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

African American (2025)26th percentile+16 vs school

Disabled (2023)17th percentile+8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)11th percentile~ school

Male (2025)9th percentile~ school

Female (2025)8th percentile~ school

By subject vs South Carolina (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts37%-19 vs state

Science18%-30 vs state

Mathematics13%-23 vs state

4.0

1 rating · 1 written review

5★0

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★0

Rate Whale Branch Middle

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

What people are saying

by a principal
Saturday, October 1, 2022

Whale Branch Middle School has a lot to offer its community. They provide a full STEAM education opportunity with every teacher being trained to provide arts integrated lessons and 2 project lead the way teachers that provide real-life opportunities through project based learning. Although test scores need improvement there is a lot more to a school's story than just their test scores. Whale Branch Middle School has great opportunities for all of its various types of learners. Close Quote

Schools Near Whale Branch Middle

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				SC READY English Language Arts (2025)			SC READY Mathematics (2025)			SC READY Science (2025)	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 End of Course	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
Whale Branch Middle	Public	6-8	2009 Trask Parkway	Seabrook	29940	Beaufort County	Beaufort 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 466-3000	243	32	7.5		13 (5.3%)	164 (67.5%)	50 (20.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (6.6%)	12.6	290^th of 320 public middle schools	9.4%		15.4	283^rd of 325 public middle schools	12.9%	7	34.2	36.5	40.7	16.5	9.5	11.5	17.8		$33,250	$2,771	$708	$3,479	$23,852	$5,919	$29,771
Sea Islands Heritage Academy	Public, Charter	6-7	10-B Holly Hall Road	Beaufort	29907	Beaufort County	School Public Charter School District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(843) 489-8433	38	3	12.6		2 (5.3%)	36 (94.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Beaufort Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	2501 Mossy Oaks Boulevard	Beaufort	29902	Beaufort County	Beaufort 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 322-5700	348	38	9.1		116 (33.3%)	152 (43.7%)	49 (14.1%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (7.8%)	45.3	163^rd of 320 public middle schools	49.1%		51.5	146^th of 325 public middle schools	55.1%	17	46.9	60.3	52.9	31.3	33.4	33.6	32.2	95.2	$22,884	$1,703	$571	$2,274	$16,438	$4,172	$20,610
Lady's Island Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	30 Cougar Drive	Beaufort	29907	Beaufort County	Beaufort 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 322-3100	338	38	8.8		86 (25.4%)	171 (50.6%)	55 (16.3%)	7 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.6%)	40.9	183^rd of 320 public middle schools	42.8%		43.7	170^th of 325 public middle schools	47.7%	13	47.3	61.8	42.3	36.4	37.0	13.1	41.0	100.0	$22,164	$1,553	$630	$2,184	$16,080	$3,900	$19,980

Frequently Asked Questions about Whale Branch Middle

How many students attend Whale Branch Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 243 students attended Whale Branch Middle.

What high school do graduates of Whale Branch Middle attend?

Students who attend Whale Branch Middle usually go on to attend Whale Branch Early College High

What district is Whale Branch Middle in?

Beaufort 01

What is the racial makeup of Whale Branch Middle?

Students at Whale Branch Middle are 67% African American, 21% Hispanic, 7% Two or more races, 5% White.

Is Whale Branch Middle a good school?

Whale Branch Middle ranks in the bottom 9.4% of South Carolina middle schools.

Rate Whale Branch Middle!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

SCSouth Carolina Middle School Rankings

SCSouth Carolina District Rankings

Schools in Seabrook, SC

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Whale Branch Middle!

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.