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Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry

Public Grades PK, KG-5

605^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 661 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 8% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry is a PK-5 elementary school in Chester, SC, serving 355 students within the Chester 01 school district, where 100% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch.

This school is facing significant academic challenges. Statewide, its ranking has dropped to the bottom 10% of South Carolina elementary schools, and it currently holds a 0-star rating. In math, proficiency rates decline sharply by grade level—from 31.8% in 3rd grade to just 20.8% in 5th grade—meaning roughly 4 out of 5 fifth graders are not meeting grade-level standards. Reading scores are also below state averages by 10-22 percentage points. Chronic absenteeism sits at 28.0%, higher than the state average of 22.3%, which continues to hinder progress. One bright spot: African American students performed relatively well in 2023-2024, ranking in the 50th percentile statewide, though that has since declined.

What makes this situation particularly frustrating is that nearby schools serving similar populations are achieving much better results. For example, Oakdale Elementary in the York 03 district reaches 77.9% proficiency in 4th grade reading and 70.6% in math, compared to 46.5% and 27.9% at this school. Even on the same campus, the Academy for Teaching and Learning outperforms the School of Inquiry in nearly every subject. The school spends $16,377 per student—more than most comparable schools—yet outcomes remain low. The gender gap is also widening, with male students now ranking in the 3rd percentile statewide. While the inquiry-based learning model has not yet produced results, the success of nearby schools shows improvement is possible with targeted interventions, especially in math and for male students.

355

Students ?

12.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,377

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

835-C Lancaster Highway
Chester, SC 29706

(803) 581-7282

District: Chester 01

Students who attend Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry usually attend:

Middle:	Chester Middle
High:	Chester Senior High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

73.2%

White:

11.5%

Two or more races:

8.2%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 28th percentile in 2016 → 8th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (34% vs 58% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (8th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 20 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school34%

District avg44%

South Carolina avg58%

605^th of 661

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 8%▼ down 19 pts since 2016

From bottom 28% (2016) to bottom 8% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 6Elementary Schools in the Chester 01

54^th of 75Chester 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	12.9	605 of 661	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.9	558 of 639	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.6	533 of 643	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.8	507 of 644	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.4	499 of 625	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.6	558 of 622	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	12.8	578 of 643	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.6	580 of 624	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	12.0	594 of 639	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	31.6	448 of 619	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	22.3	551 of 638	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	23.2	543 of 630	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	21.5	518 of 599	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	22.9	509 of 594	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	15.7	544 of 597	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	10.8	557 of 589	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	7.8	560 of 580	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	8.5	558 of 577	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	5.5	553 of 566	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	12.7	519 of 559	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	10.0	532 of 557	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	26.7	443 of 550	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	33.2	396 of 542	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	31.0	292 of 384	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	39.8	235 of 380	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	48.3	182 of 369	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.0	123 of 394	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	50.6	179 of 393	54.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	30.6	260 of 350	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	28.9	338 of 421	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.8	325 of 412	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	19.7	490 of 580	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.5	494 of 568	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.2	432 of 580	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.0	441 of 573	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	10.1	516 of 554	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.9	524 of 588	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.6	525 of 570	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	19.2	555 of 634	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.9	502 of 612	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.5	491 of 602	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.2	481 of 608	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.2	449 of 600	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.9	531 of 580	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.7	533 of 600	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	13.6	557 of 588	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	7.2	576 of 591	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.4	515 of 585	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	21.0	460 of 571	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.4	485 of 582	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.0	468 of 579	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.3	489 of 561	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	11.7	544 of 590	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.9	529 of 571	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)24th percentile+15 vs school

Female (2025)16th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)12th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)3rd percentile-6 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts47%-17 vs state

Mathematics26%-27 vs state

Science19%-33 vs state

★

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Schools Near Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry

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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
Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry	Public	PK, KG-5	835-C Lancaster Highway	Chester	29706	Chester County	Chester 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 581-7282	355	29	12.2	100.0%	41 (11.5%)	260 (73.2%)	25 (7.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (8.2%)	12.9	605^th of 661 public elementary schools	8.5%		15.9	558^th of 639 public elementary schools	12.7%	47	54.5	46.5	41.5				31.8	27.9	20.8				18.6		$16,377	$2,625	$1,211	$3,836	$10,258	$2,283	$12,541
Chester Park Elementary School for the Arts	Public	PK, KG-5	835-A Lancaster Highway	Chester	29706	Chester County	Chester 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 581-7279	331	29	11.4	93.3%	95 (28.7%)	163 (49.2%)	41 (12.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	30 (9.1%)	19.9	537^th of 661 public elementary schools	18.8%		18.9	535^th of 639 public elementary schools	16.3%	2	40.9	35.4	46.1				50.0	38.3	41.1				23.9		$15,915	$2,229	$815	$3,043	$10,498	$2,374	$12,872
Chester Park Elementary School of Literacy and Technology	Public	PK, KG-5	835-B Lancaster Highway	Chester	29706	Chester County	Chester 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 581-7275	300	22	13.6	95.7%	54 (18.0%)	171 (57.0%)	44 (14.7%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (9.7%)	6.9	645^th of 661 public elementary schools	2.4%		6.6	623^rd of 639 public elementary schools	2.5%	22	30.9	45.2	26.0				40.4	26.2	8.7				11.9		$16,772	$3,164	$831	$3,995	$10,322	$2,456	$12,778
Academy for Teaching and Learning	Public, Charter	K-8	109 Hinton Street	Chester	29706	Chester County	Chester 01	Yes	No	No	No	(803) 385-6334	329	28	11.7	100.0%	263 (79.9%)	54 (16.4%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.4%)	36.5	421^st of 661 public elementary schools	36.3%		40.5	372^nd of 639 public elementary schools	41.8%	49	67.5	61.2	52.6	51.3	59.2	58.3	56.7	47.2	42.1	24.3	29.6		25.0	29.7	$14,498	$698	$591	$1,289	$10,454	$2,755	$13,209
Lewisville Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4006 Lewisville High School Ro	Richburg	29729	Chester County	Chester 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 789-5164	594	41	14.6	100.0%	323 (54.4%)	151 (25.4%)	56 (9.4%)	9 (1.5%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (8.8%)	46.3	342^nd of 661 public elementary schools	48.3%		44	347^th of 639 public elementary schools	45.7%	5	62.5	58.3	63.3				58.4	37.4	53.1				40.7		$13,880	$1,538	$726	$2,264	$9,531	$2,084	$11,615
Oakdale Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1129 Oakdale Road	Rock Hill	29730	York County	York 03	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 981-1585	487	36	13.5	100.0%	106 (21.8%)	296 (60.8%)	37 (7.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	45 (9.2%)	69.5	197^th of 661 public elementary schools	70.2%		58.7	264^th of 639 public elementary schools	58.7%	67	73.8	77.9	57.3				66.2	70.6	46.7				67.7		$15,312	$1,111	$968	$2,079	$11,875	$1,357	$13,232
Mount Holly Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1800 Porter Road	Rock Hill	29730	York County	York 03	No	No	No	No	(803) 985-1650	514	36	14.2	100.0%	237 (46.1%)	172 (33.5%)	57 (11.1%)	4 (0.8%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (8.0%)	61.6	244^th of 661 public elementary schools	63.1%		53.7	283^rd of 639 public elementary schools	55.7%	39	77.7	64.8	73.9				65.3	50.0	46.4				47.3		$14,991	$840	$863	$1,703	$11,767	$1,521	$13,288
Sunset Park Center for Accelerated Studies	Public	PK, KG-5	1036 Ogden Road	Rock Hill	29730	York County	York 03	No	No	No	No	(803) 981-1260	431	32	13.4	100.0%	64 (14.8%)	307 (71.2%)	33 (7.7%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	24 (5.6%)	43.3	373^rd of 661 public elementary schools	43.6%		43.2	355^th of 639 public elementary schools	44.4%	18	71.5	55.7	65.9				54.0	38.5	35.3				44.3		$15,207	$1,134	$1,017	$2,152	$11,473	$1,582	$13,056
The Palmetto School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	386 East Black Street	Rock Hill	29732	York County	York 03	Yes	No	No	Yes	(803) 328-6555	63	8	8.4	27.6%	18 (28.6%)	36 (57.1%)	3 (4.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (9.5%)								(n/a)															$24,274	$2,165	$2,152	$4,317	$15,967	$3,989	$19,957
York Road Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2254 West Main Street	Rock Hill	29732	York County	York 03	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 981-1950	431	34	12.6	100.0%	131 (30.4%)	206 (47.8%)	58 (13.5%)	4 (0.9%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	28 (6.5%)	22.1	523^rd of 661 public elementary schools	20.9%		14.8	564^th of 639 public elementary schools	11.7%	41	63.7	48.7	42.0				40.6	31.6	30.4				31.6		$15,904	$642	$1,002	$1,645	$12,384	$1,876	$14,260

Frequently Asked Questions about Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry

What district is Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry in?

Chester 01

What schools do graduates of Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry attend?

Students who attend Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry usually go on to attend:

Middle : Chester Middle
High : Chester Senior High

Is Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry a good school?

Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry ranks in the bottom 8.5% of South Carolina elementary schools.

How many students attend Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry?

In the 2024-25 school year, 355 students attended Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry.

What is the racial makeup of Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry?

Students at Chester Park School Elementary of Inquiry are 73% African American, 12% White, 8% Two or more races, 7% Hispanic.

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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.