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Gaffney High

Public Grades 9-12

218^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 245 South Carolina High Schools

Better than 11% of South Carolina high schools

Summary

Gaffney High serves approximately 1,827 students in grades 9-12 in Gaffney, South Carolina, within the Cherokee 01 school district. The school has seen its state ranking decline significantly over the past decade, dropping from the 35th percentile in 2015-2016 to just the 11th percentile in 2025-2026, and now holds a 1-star rating.

Academic performance at Gaffney High lags well behind state averages and nearby schools. On recent end-of-course exams, only 29.41% of students scored proficient in Algebra 1 compared to 64.58% statewide, and just 40.56% were proficient in English 1 versus 60.91% statewide. The contrast with neighboring schools is stark—Chesnee High, just 11 miles away, achieved 77.27% proficiency in Algebra 1, while Broome High posted 75.19%. Even Blacksburg High, the only other high school in the same district, outperformed Gaffney substantially in English 1 (59.55% vs. 40.56%) and U.S. History (62.28% vs. 42.30%). The graduation rate of 79.6% also falls well below the state average of 86.7% and trails every comparable school in the region, including Blacksburg's 91.0% and Boiling Springs High's 90.3%.

Several factors may be contributing to these outcomes. Chronic absenteeism has been persistently high, reaching 41.6% in 2022-2023 before improving to 26.3% in 2024-2025—still above the state average of 22.3%. The school also operates with a student-teacher ratio of 17.7:1 and per-student spending of just $4,461, dramatically lower than nearby schools like Spartanburg High ($14,424) and Broome High ($14,045). While the school serves a population with 76.78% economic disadvantage, the comparison with Blacksburg High—which serves a similar demographic with better outcomes and a lower student-teacher ratio of 13.3:1—suggests these challenges may be addressable through targeted investment and programmatic changes.

1,827

Students ?

17.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$4,461

Per pupil spending ?

76.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

149 Twin Lake Road
Gaffney, SC 29341

(864) 206-2000

District: Cherokee 01

Feeder schools for Gaffney High:

Elementary:	B. D. Lee Elementary
	Corinth Elementary
	Draytonville Elementary
	Grassy Pond Elementary
	More...
	Limestone-Central Elementary
	Luther L. Vaughan Elementary
	Northwest Elementary
Middle:	Gaffney Middle
	John E. Ewing Middle

Racial breakdown:

White:

51.9%

African American:

29.9%

Hispanic:

14.3%

See top rated South Carolina high schools

Compare Gaffney High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 35th percentile in 2016 → 11th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (52% vs 69% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (11th percentile)

!Graduation rate below the South Carolina average (80% vs 87%)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school52%

District avg55%

South Carolina avg69%

218^th of 245

South Carolina public high schools ?

Bottom 11%▼ down 24 pts since 2016

From bottom 35% (2016) to bottom 11% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2High Schools in the Cherokee 01

57^th of 75Cherokee 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
2026	17.7	218 of 245	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.5	207 of 235	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.0	203 of 235	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.2	198 of 237	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.8	182 of 226	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.7	178 of 227	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.5	176 of 225	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.2	155 of 216	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	18.5	183 of 223	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	33.2	150 of 231	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2015	38.6	128 of 232	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2014	51.4	108 of 210	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2013	45.2	117 of 203	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2012	46.1	123 of 202	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	44.5	120 of 199	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2010	57.0	92 of 199	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2009	47.9	121 of 188	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2008	60.6	90 of 185	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2007	56.0	109 of 191	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2006	57.2	107 of 191	44.0%	★★☆☆☆
2005	50.8	125 of 187	33.2%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	11.9	192 of 198	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.8	188 of 194	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.4	183 of 194	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.9	193 of 199	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.5	171 of 190	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.3	163 of 178	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.3	166 of 184	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.5	152 of 183	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	23.4	117 of 136	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.6	134 of 139	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	23.0	124 of 145	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	41.3	80 of 141	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	19.7	113 of 139	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.0	97 of 115	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.1	119 of 143	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	31.2	97 of 137	29.2%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	10.5	58 of 59	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	32.2	55 of 69	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.4	59 of 71	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.4	57 of 68	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.8	51 of 61	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	36.5	33 of 46	28.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	10.4	60 of 64	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.8	56 of 58	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	12.0	208 of 227	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	12.4	209 of 225	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	16.3	194 of 225	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	13.7	196 of 223	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.8	171 of 220	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.0	173 of 213	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.2	166 of 213	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.6	157 of 210	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	4.8	149 of 155	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.9	145 of 153	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.2	148 of 157	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.9	148 of 156	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	5.4	122 of 124	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	12.7	114 of 121	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.2	115 of 121	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.0	114 of 119	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.4	99 of 108	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.9	81 of 93	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	12.0	82 of 86	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.5	76 of 80	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	14.9	221 of 238	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	13.7	210 of 226	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	14.1	208 of 229	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.2	199 of 226	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.6	186 of 220	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.5	183 of 213	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.7	190 of 217	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.1	162 of 214	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	21.5	196 of 231	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	16.0	196 of 224	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.5	201 of 228	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.4	183 of 229	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.1	184 of 224	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.2	168 of 215	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.7	179 of 218	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.0	158 of 213	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	16.0	178 of 201	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	10.7	183 of 196	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.4	189 of 196	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.2	182 of 197	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.0	181 of 192	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.6	176 of 189	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.1	169 of 191	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	16.6	160 of 185	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Male (2026)15th percentile+4 vs school

Disabled (2026)14th percentile+3 vs school

White (2026)11th percentile~ school

Female (2026)8th percentile-3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)7th percentile-4 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)4th percentile-7 vs school

African American (2026)3rd percentile-8 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)2nd percentile-9 vs school

Hispanic (2026)2nd percentile-9 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English 274%-10 vs state

U.S. History and the Constitution42%-20 vs state

English 141%-20 vs state

Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 229%-35 vs state

★

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Schools Near Gaffney High

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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)				EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (2026)	EOCEP English 1 (2026)	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution (2026)	EOCEP English 2 (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	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 End of Course	EOCEP English 1 End of Course	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution End of Course	EOCEP English 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
Gaffney High	Public	9-12	149 Twin Lake Road	Gaffney	29341	Cherokee County	Cherokee 01	No	No	No	No	(864) 206-2000	1,827	103	17.7	76.8%	949 (51.9%)	546 (29.9%)	262 (14.3%)	23 (1.3%)	2 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (2.5%)	17.7	218^th of 245 public high schools	11.0%		15.5	207^th of 235 public high schools	11.9%	11	29.4	40.6	42.3	73.7	$4,461	$1,109	$594	$1,703	$1,890	$869	$2,758
Institute of Innovation	Public	9-12	175 Campus Drive	Gaffney	29341	Cherokee County	Cherokee 01	No	No	No	No	(864) 206-2576	0	28	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Blacksburg High	Public	9-12	201 West Ramseur Drive	Blacksburg	29702	Cherokee County	Cherokee 01	No	No	No	No	(864) 206-2378	482	36	13.3	74.5%	374 (77.6%)	62 (12.9%)	19 (3.9%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (4.8%)	61.5	96^th of 245 public high schools	60.8%		32.8	155^th of 235 public high schools	34.0%	59		59.6	62.3	88.9	$4,522	$1,055	$600	$1,655	$1,951	$916	$2,867
Broome High	Public	9-12	381 Cherry Hill Road	Spartanburg	29307	Spartanburg County	Spartanburg 03	No	No	No	No	(864) 279-6700	865	49	17.7	61.1%	551 (63.7%)	142 (16.4%)	112 (12.9%)	8 (0.9%)	3 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (5.7%)	56.9	106^th of 245 public high schools	56.7%		54	93^rd of 235 public high schools	60.4%	13	75.2	59.7	61.6	82.8	$14,045	$400	$929	$1,328	$10,015	$2,701	$12,716
Chesnee High	Public	9-12	795 South Alabama Avenue	Chesnee	29323	Spartanburg County	Spartanburg 02	No	No	No	No	(864) 461-7318	673	43	15.8	58.8%	546 (81.1%)	41 (6.1%)	40 (5.9%)	5 (0.7%)	6 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (5.2%)	67.9	70^th of 245 public high schools	71.4%		70.5	47^th of 235 public high schools	80.0%	23	77.3	58.4	75.1	87.3	$13,085	$584	$534	$1,117	$10,259	$1,709	$11,968
Daniel Morgan Technology Center	Public	9-12	201 Zion Hill Road	Spartanburg	29307	Spartanburg County	Spartanburg 80	No	No	No	No	(864) 279-6900	0	20	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Spartanburg High	Public	9-12	2250 E. Main Street	Spartanburg	29307	Spartanburg County	Spartanburg 07	No	No	No	No	(864) 594-4410	2,164	136	15.9	69.1%	641 (29.6%)	1,074 (49.6%)	285 (13.2%)	55 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (0.3%)	102 (4.7%)	50.9	119^th of 245 public high schools	51.4%		43.6	127^th of 235 public high schools	46.0%	8	61.0	60.3	60.6	81.1	$14,424	$655	$941	$1,596	$11,072	$1,756	$12,829
School School for the Blind High	Public	9-12	355 Cedar Springs Road	Spartanburg	29302	Spartanburg County	Deaf & Blind School	No	No	No	No	(864) 577-7600	23	8	2.8	12.0%	10 (43.5%)	8 (34.8%)	3 (13.0%)	1 (4.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (4.3%)								(n/a)
School School for the Deaf High	Public	9-12	355 Cedar Springs Road	Spartanburg	29302	Spartanburg County	Deaf & Blind School	No	No	No	No	(864) 577-7743	31	14	2.2	11.5%	14 (45.2%)	11 (35.5%)	3 (9.7%)	3 (9.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Boiling Springs High	Public	9-12	2251 Old Furnace Road	Boiling Springs	29316	Spartanburg County	Spartanburg 02	No	No	No	No	(864) 578-8465	2,772	142	19.5	61.1%	1,678 (60.5%)	513 (18.5%)	249 (9.0%)	114 (4.1%)	35 (1.3%)	3 (0.1%)	180 (6.5%)	74	55^th of 245 public high schools	77.6%		74.3	40^th of 235 public high schools	83.0%	15	36.4	71.3	82.5	84.5	$9,448	$392	$700	$1,091	$7,249	$1,108	$8,356

Frequently Asked Questions about Gaffney High

What schools feed into Gaffney High?

Gaffney High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : B. D. Lee Elementary
Elementary : Corinth Elementary
Elementary : Draytonville Elementary
Elementary : Grassy Pond Elementary
Elementary : Limestone-Central Elementary
Elementary : Luther L. Vaughan Elementary
Elementary : Northwest Elementary
Middle : Gaffney Middle
Middle : John E. Ewing Middle

Is Gaffney High a good school?

Gaffney High ranks in the bottom 11.0% of South Carolina high schools.

How many students attend Gaffney High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,827 students attended Gaffney High.

What district is Gaffney High in?

Cherokee 01

What is the racial makeup of Gaffney High?

Students at Gaffney High are 52% White, 30% African American, 14% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

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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.