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Murray-LaSaine Montessori

Q: Is Murray-LaSaine Montessori a good school?

Murray-LaSaine Montessori ranks 130 th of 661 South Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-8

130^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 661 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 80% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Murray-LaSaine Montessori is a public Montessori school in Charleston, SC, serving 347 students in grades PK through 8 within the high-performing Charleston 01 district. The school has earned a 4-star rating for five consecutive years, ranking in the 80th percentile statewide—a remarkable turnaround from just a decade ago when it sat in the 30th percentile.

The school's greatest strength is early literacy. In grades 3-5, English Language Arts proficiency consistently tops 80%, beating both district and state averages. This puts Murray-LaSaine on par with top traditional schools like Stiles Point Elementary (93.1% in 5th grade) and Harbor View Elementary (87.5%). The Montessori method's phonics-based, individualized approach clearly pays off for reading. However, math tells a different story. While 3rd grade math proficiency is strong at 74.3%, it drops sharply to 55.9% by 5th grade and plummets to just 33.4% in 6th grade—well below the district average of 55.4%. This 41-point decline from 3rd to 6th grade is a pattern not seen at nearby schools like Carolina Voyager Charter, which maintains more consistent math scores across grades.

Families will appreciate the school's strong attendance culture—only 13.2% of students are chronically absent, compared to 20.5% district-wide. The student-teacher ratio is a favorable 14:1, and per-student spending is notably high at $26,181, roughly 50% more than nearby high performers like Harbor View ($16,949) and Stiles Point ($17,245). While this investment supports the specialized Montessori materials and training, it's worth noting that those lower-cost schools actually rank higher overall. The school also shows some inconsistency with its highest-achieving students, with Gifted and Talented students ranking in just the 19th-30th percentile recently. For parents prioritizing early reading skills and a nurturing, individualized environment, Murray-LaSaine is an excellent choice—just be aware of the math challenges that emerge in upper grades.

347

Students ?

14.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$26,181

Per pupil spending ?

29.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

691 Riverland Drive
Charleston, SC 29412

(843) 762-2765

District: Charleston 01

Students who attend Murray-LaSaine Montessori usually attend:

Middle:	Camp Road Middle
High:	James Island Charter High

Racial breakdown:

White:

81.6%

African American:

8.1%

Hispanic:

6.3%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare Murray-LaSaine Montessori to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 35th percentile in 2016 → 80th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the South Carolina average (69% vs 54% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 20% of South Carolina elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 45 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school69%

District avg63%

South Carolina avg54%

Elementary school

130^th of 661

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Top 20%▲ up 46 pts since 2016

From bottom 35% (2016) to top 20% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

104^th of 341

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Top 30%▲ up 6 pts since 2021

From top 36% (2021) to top 30% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

19^th of 46Elementary Schools in the Charleston 01

22^nd of 75Charleston 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	79.1	130 of 661	80.3%	★★★★☆
2025	78.9	127 of 639	80.1%	★★★★☆
2024	81.1	112 of 643	82.6%	★★★★☆
2023	80.3	118 of 644	81.7%	★★★★☆
2022	80.7	110 of 625	82.4%	★★★★☆
2021	72.5	157 of 622	74.8%	★★★★☆
2019	47.3	341 of 643	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	31.5	434 of 624	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2017	37.1	402 of 639	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2016	36.2	404 of 619	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2015	35.5	430 of 638	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2014	30.8	481 of 630	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	48.0	348 of 599	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	56.7	287 of 594	51.7%	★★★☆☆
2011	45.2	370 of 597	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	52.2	302 of 589	48.7%	★★☆☆☆
2009	40.8	383 of 580	34.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	36.0	414 of 577	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	42.4	375 of 566	33.7%	★★☆☆☆
2006	44.2	353 of 559	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2005	21.6	482 of 557	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	25.2	454 of 550	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	40.6	358 of 542	33.9%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	72.9	146 of 599	75.6%	★★★★☆
2025	75.7	132 of 580	77.2%	★★★★☆
2022	87.7	65 of 573	88.7%	★★★★☆
2021	80.8	95 of 554	82.9%	★★★★☆
2019	38.4	383 of 588	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	23.1	458 of 570	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	44.7	71 of 101	29.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.1	85 of 105	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2021	54.1	259 of 580	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	25.9	471 of 600	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.9	441 of 588	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	77.3	120 of 585	79.5%	★★★★☆
2023	89.7	48 of 582	91.8%	★★★★★
2022	68.8	172 of 579	70.3%	★★★★☆
2021	67.6	156 of 561	72.2%	★★★★☆
2019	54.7	276 of 590	53.2%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	71.5	128 of 463	72.4%	★★★★☆
2025	64.1	168 of 459	63.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	74.3	102 of 446	77.1%	★★★★☆
2023	65.1	159 of 463	65.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	59.8	186 of 455	59.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	55.1	205 of 439	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	56.5	216 of 472	54.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	33.7	322 of 457	29.5%	★★☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	64.2	104 of 341	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	80.0	61 of 325	81.2%	★★★★☆
2021	58.6	113 of 311	63.7%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2021	54.1	117 of 288	59.4%	★★★☆☆

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)

Elementary school

Male (2025)79th percentile~ school

Female (2026)76th percentile-5 vs school

White (2026)72nd percentile-8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2021)55th percentile-19 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2025)30th percentile-50 vs school

Middle school

Low Socio Economic Status (2021)59th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts78%+17 vs state

Science70%+18 vs state

Mathematics59%+11 vs state

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Saturday, January 24, 2015

We love Murray Lasaine Elementary. We have two children there, both in the Montessori program, and have had only wonderful experiences for the past two years. The teachers and staff are kind and devoted; the children are delightful, of course; and the parents are generous and involved. We love the diversity compared to other James Island schools, and we love the community feel of the school. It feels like family. The Montessori Program is fully stocked with appropriate materials, and the teachers are all entirely committed to the Montessori philosophy, so I feel confident that my children are experiencing the benefits of a true Montessori education. The school is experiencing natural growing pains as the enrollment has almost doubled, but that is all par for the course and will soon level out and in no way affects the children negatively. My children never even witness teasing, bullying, ostracizing, or any thing of the sort. They feel safe and loved by the entire community. The SAIL program for Talented and Gifted is outstanding. We're looking forward to a newly renovated building in Fall 2015!! Close Quote

Schools Near Murray-LaSaine Montessori

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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 3rd Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 4th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 5th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 6th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 7th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 8th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 3rd Grade	SC READY Mathematics 4th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 4th 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
Murray-LaSaine Montessori	Public	PK, KG-8	691 Riverland Drive	Charleston	29412	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 762-2765	347	25	14.1	29.6%	283 (81.6%)	28 (8.1%)	22 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.7%)	79.1	130^th of 661 public elementary schools	80.3%		78.9	127^th of 639 public elementary schools	80.1%	3	82.0	80.5	82.4	62.5			74.3	61.2	55.9	33.4			72.3	66.7	$26,181	$3,783	$1,369	$5,152	$16,995	$4,034	$21,029
Harbor View Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1576 Harbor View Road	Charleston	29412	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 762-2749	621	42	14.6	36.9%	483 (77.8%)	71 (11.4%)	29 (4.7%)	7 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.5%)	28 (4.5%)	90.4	47^th of 661 public elementary schools	92.9%		91.1	41^st of 639 public elementary schools	93.6%	6	78.3	82.8	87.5				76.6	73.1	75.0				80.7		$16,949	$2,536	$1,313	$3,849	$10,363	$2,737	$13,100
St. Andrew's School of Math and Science	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	30 Chadwick Drive	Charleston	29407	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 763-1503	769	52	14.8	41.7%	450 (58.5%)	166 (21.6%)	82 (10.7%)	15 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	54 (7.0%)	82.6	104^th of 661 public elementary schools	84.3%		86.3	75^th of 639 public elementary schools	88.3%	29	81.6	76.5	66.1				83.2	67.2	61.7				73.1		$18,113	$3,633	$1,283	$4,916	$10,805	$2,392	$13,197
James Island Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1872 Grimball Road	Charleston	29412	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 762-8240	580	41	14.1	44.2%	377 (65.0%)	152 (26.2%)	19 (3.3%)	4 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (4.5%)	77	142^nd of 661 public elementary schools	78.5%		74.3	166^th of 639 public elementary schools	74.0%	24	73.9	72.9	65.8				76.8	75.3	54.9				65.9		$26,743	$4,799	$1,534	$6,333	$16,689	$3,721	$20,410
Stono Park Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	314 Huntley Drive	Charleston	29407	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 763-1507	337	25	13.4	100.0%	56 (16.6%)	232 (68.8%)	23 (6.8%)	5 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (6.2%)	22.2	522^nd of 661 public elementary schools	21.0%		16.8	550^th of 639 public elementary schools	13.9%	28	45.4	43.9	50.0				45.5	31.7	41.2				36.6		$28,562	$6,379	$1,956	$8,335	$15,932	$4,295	$20,227
Stiles Point Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	883-A Mikell Drive	Charleston	29412	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 762-2767	866	51	17.1	15.4%	772 (89.1%)	34 (3.9%)	19 (2.2%)	5 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (4.0%)	97.4	5^th of 661 public elementary schools	99.2%		96.2	15^th of 639 public elementary schools	97.7%	10	94.5	90.0	93.1				93.6	86.7	86.2				85.4		$17,245	$3,274	$1,316	$4,590	$10,588	$2,066	$12,654
Charleston Development Academy	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	233 Line Street	Charleston	29403	Charleston County	Charleston 01	Yes	No	No	Yes	(843) 722-2689	151	15	10.2	100.0%	0 (0.0%)	151 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	35.2	428^th of 661 public elementary schools	35.2%					(n/a)				57.7		65.0				15.3		15.0		42.3
Carolina Voyager Charter	Public, Charter	K-8	1409 Bluewater Way	Charleston	29414	Charleston County	Charleston 01	Yes	No	No	No	(843) 203-3891	402	30	13.6	44.4%	287 (71.4%)	51 (12.7%)	21 (5.2%)	12 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.7%)	81.2	118^th of 661 public elementary schools	82.1%		74.1	167^th of 639 public elementary schools	73.9%	49	77.7	80.0	73.9	69.6	66.0	68.3	53.4	75.6	69.6	65.2	50.0	63.4	62.3	71.8
Memminger Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	20 Beaufain Street	Charleston	29401	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 724-7778	438	37	11.8	100.0%	221 (50.5%)	176 (40.2%)	11 (2.5%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.9%)	33.3	436^th of 661 public elementary schools	34.0%		30.2	449^th of 639 public elementary schools	29.7%	13	53.0	55.5	37.1				53.0	47.2	31.5				52.8		$26,342	$4,773	$1,844	$6,616	$15,297	$4,429	$19,726
Mitchell Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	2 Perry Street	Charleston	29403	Charleston County	Charleston 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 724-7261	188	24	7.8	100.0%	6 (3.2%)	167 (88.8%)	5 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (5.3%)	8.7	640^th of 661 public elementary schools	3.2%		7.3	621^st of 639 public elementary schools	2.8%	19	28.5	25.1	45.0				33.4	12.6	40.0				18.7		$36,173	$8,691	$2,278	$10,969	$18,813	$6,391	$25,204

Frequently Asked Questions about Murray-LaSaine Montessori

Is Murray-LaSaine Montessori a good school?

Murray-LaSaine Montessori ranks 130^th of 661 South Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Murray-LaSaine Montessori attend?

Students who attend Murray-LaSaine Montessori usually go on to attend:

Middle : Camp Road Middle
High : James Island Charter High

How many students attend Murray-LaSaine Montessori?

In the 2024-25 school year, 347 students attended Murray-LaSaine Montessori.

What district is Murray-LaSaine Montessori in?

Charleston 01

What is the racial makeup of Murray-LaSaine Montessori?

Students at Murray-LaSaine Montessori are 82% White, 8% African American, 6% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races.

Rate Murray-LaSaine Montessori!

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Latest South Carolina data All new data »

2025–26 EOCEP & SC READY test scoresAug 10, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataNov 3, 2025

2024–25 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesNov 3, 2025

2024–25 EOCEP & SC READY test scoresSep 2, 2025

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.