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Darlington Middle

Q: Is Darlington Middle a good school?

Darlington Middle ranks 208 th of 341 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public, Magnet Grades 6-8

208^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 341 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 39% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

Darlington Middle serves 888 students in grades 6-8 in Darlington, SC, and is part of the Darlington 01 district. The school has maintained a consistent 2-star rating for the past decade, with all students qualifying for free or reduced lunch.

One of the school's standout strengths is its exceptional performance with African American students, who rank in the 73rd percentile statewide—a remarkable achievement given the school's overall 38th percentile ranking. The school also excels in advanced math, with 100% of students scoring proficient on the Algebra 1 End-of-Course exam in recent years, far exceeding both district and state averages. However, grade-level math proficiency remains a challenge, with only about 29-34% of 6th and 7th graders meeting standards. Chronic absenteeism is a concern at 27.1%, higher than both the district (23.4%) and state (22.3%) rates, which likely impacts overall performance.

Compared to nearby schools, Darlington Middle shows a mixed picture. Spaulding Middle, also in the Darlington 01 district, has shown recent improvement and has significantly lower chronic absenteeism (15.1%) and a better student-teacher ratio. John W. Moore Middle in the neighboring Florence 01 district outperforms Darlington across nearly every metric, including substantially higher math proficiency rates. Notably, Darlington spends more per student ($15,589) than several higher-performing nearby schools, suggesting that additional funding alone isn't driving the performance gap. While the school has remained stable for a decade, its strong results with African American students and advanced math pathway suggest effective practices that could potentially be expanded to benefit all students.

888

Students ?

15.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,589

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

150 Pinedale Drive
Darlington, SC 29532

(843) 398-5088

District: Darlington 01

Students who attend Darlington Middle usually attend:

High:

Darlington High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

60.6%

White:

23.6%

Two or more races:

11.1%

See top rated South Carolina middle schools

Compare Darlington Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 36th percentile in 2016 → 39th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (43% vs 51% meeting standards)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school43%

District avg44%

South Carolina avg51%

208^th of 341

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 39%▲ up 3 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 3Middle Schools in the Darlington 01

45^th of 75Darlington 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	39.0	208 of 341	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.9	202 of 321	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.4	205 of 322	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.8	199 of 325	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.2	188 of 310	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.7	215 of 311	30.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.3	203 of 315	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.6	193 of 303	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	34.6	212 of 317	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2016	40.0	193 of 303	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2015	30.2	222 of 301	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	34.3	207 of 291	28.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	36.5	193 of 276	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2012	41.3	180 of 271	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2011	38.5	188 of 269	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2010	41.4	177 of 261	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2009	25.0	205 of 249	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	39.1	168 of 244	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2007	41.5	156 of 236	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2006	33.1	169 of 231	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	36.2	163 of 230	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	29.6	177 of 230	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	20.4	194 of 225	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	61.5	69 of 258	73.3%	★★★★☆
2025	61.8	67 of 251	73.3%	★★★★☆
2024	59.0	76 of 246	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.4	83 of 253	67.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	56.5	81 of 249	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	46.9	112 of 235	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	52.7	100 of 252	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.2	73 of 237	69.2%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	46.9	87 of 192	54.7%	★★★☆☆
2025	57.0	59 of 184	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	38.0	111 of 177	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.8	131 of 187	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	44.8	94 of 183	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	27.9	130 of 164	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.7	113 of 195	42.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	47.7	92 of 194	52.6%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	43.2	175 of 310	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	38.5	182 of 295	38.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.9	191 of 293	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.2	183 of 299	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.7	175 of 290	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.0	195 of 279	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.7	181 of 296	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.3	176 of 281	37.4%	★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	63.6	87 of 197	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	30.7	149 of 173	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	63.1	88 of 184	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	50.8	116 of 185	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	61.4	79 of 182	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	33.8	140 of 179	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	56.6	59 of 156	62.2%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	48.6	154 of 325	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2025	46.6	150 of 308	51.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	42.2	167 of 304	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	47.1	146 of 313	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.6	148 of 300	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	39.0	166 of 288	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	47.4	145 of 289	49.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	48.3	132 of 280	52.9%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	33.5	202 of 310	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	32.2	208 of 298	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.6	196 of 292	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.7	186 of 303	38.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.2	188 of 292	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.4	198 of 279	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.8	210 of 296	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	34.7	187 of 284	34.2%	★★☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	31.8	44 of 65	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.0	49 of 63	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.9	38 of 52	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	39.5	39 of 58	32.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	40.8	27 of 44	38.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	36.2	16 of 25	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	21.0	35 of 39	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	41.8	158 of 271	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.1	173 of 259	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	30.6	184 of 256	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	40.7	155 of 260	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.0	172 of 249	30.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.2	175 of 244	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.5	149 of 258	42.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	33.8	165 of 250	34.0%	★★☆☆☆

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)73rd percentile+34 vs school

Hispanic (2025)62nd percentile+25 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)56th percentile+17 vs school

Disabled (2026)55th percentile+16 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)53rd percentile+14 vs school

Female (2026)44th percentile+5 vs school

White (2026)42nd percentile+3 vs school

Male (2026)35th percentile-4 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)32nd percentile-7 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts52%-6 vs state

Science45%-7 vs state

Mathematics34%-9 vs state

★

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Schools Near Darlington Middle

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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 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	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
Darlington Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	150 Pinedale Drive	Darlington	29532	Darlington County	Darlington 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 398-5088	888	58	15.3	100.0%	210 (23.6%)	538 (60.6%)	35 (3.9%)	2 (0.2%)	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	99 (11.1%)	39	208^th of 341 public middle schools	39.0%		35.9	202^nd of 321 public middle schools	37.1%	6	49.4	48.4	58.2	33.6	28.8	39.2	45.0	$15,589	$1,606	$1,442	$3,048	$10,927	$1,614	$12,540
John W. Moore Middle	Public	6-8	191 Westfield Drive	Florence	29501	Florence County	Florence 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 664-8171	1,056	73	14.4	61.3%	414 (39.2%)	429 (40.6%)	89 (8.4%)	35 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	89 (8.4%)	55.7	139^th of 341 public middle schools	59.2%		60.3	108^th of 321 public middle schools	66.4%	31	61.3	53.5	58.3	41.3	35.6	51.1	52.7	$12,994	$526	$1,466	$1,993	$9,189	$1,813	$11,002
Hartsville Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	1427 Fourteenth Street	Hartsville	29550	Darlington County	Darlington 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 857-3121	801	61	13.1	100.0%	353 (44.1%)	306 (38.2%)	59 (7.4%)	8 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	75 (9.4%)	41.7	194^th of 341 public middle schools	43.1%		36.9	198^th of 321 public middle schools	38.3%	4	50.0	59.5	49.2	34.0	38.6	27.5	50.4	$16,121	$1,284	$1,035	$2,320	$12,135	$1,666	$13,801
Henry L. Sneed Middle	Public	6-8	1102 Ebenezer Road	Florence	29501	Florence County	Florence 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 673-1199	634	52	12.1	89.9%	136 (21.5%)	400 (63.1%)	48 (7.6%)	4 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (7.1%)	34.8	224^th of 341 public middle schools	34.3%		32.8	215^th of 321 public middle schools	33.0%	9	51.3	55.3	39.6	37.2	29.6	30.5	44.7	$14,430	$976	$1,047	$2,023	$10,294	$2,113	$12,407
Williams Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	1100 North Irby Street	Florence	29501	Florence County	Florence 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 664-8162	792	68	11.6	100.0%	120 (15.2%)	532 (67.2%)	29 (3.7%)	37 (4.7%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	71 (9.0%)	31.4	235^th of 341 public middle schools	31.1%		33.9	210^th of 321 public middle schools	34.6%	25	47.6	47.3	37.0	32.2	35.7	30.8	43.6	$12,873	$861	$1,058	$1,919	$9,184	$1,769	$10,954
Spaulding Middle	Public	6-8	400 East Cartersville Highway	Lamar	29069	Darlington County	Darlington 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 326-7625	228	18	12.6	100.0%	77 (33.8%)	115 (50.4%)	13 (5.7%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (9.6%)	42.5	186^th of 341 public middle schools	45.5%		51.6	137^th of 321 public middle schools	57.3%	49	55.1	53.3	50.6	26.9	42.9	41.4	42.3	$18,777	$2,233	$1,365	$3,598	$12,774	$2,404	$15,179
Southside Middle	Public	6-8	209 W. Jones Paul Road	Florence	29505	Florence County	Florence 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 664-8467	1,138	80	14.2	100.0%	365 (32.1%)	584 (51.3%)	72 (6.3%)	12 (1.1%)	4 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	101 (8.9%)	43.1	185^th of 341 public middle schools	45.7%		43.9	169^th of 321 public middle schools	47.4%	16	53.6	49.5	54.6	32.9	31.2	42.7	50.5	$12,200	$609	$1,037	$1,646	$8,592	$1,961	$10,553
Lee Central Middle	Public	6-8	41 Charlene Lane	Bishopville	29010	Lee County	Lee 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 428-2100	288	28	10.2	100.0%	23 (8.0%)	252 (87.5%)	10 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	6.2	331^st of 341 public middle schools	2.9%		8.8	309^th of 321 public middle schools	3.7%	22	24.5	32.1	33.7	11.7	15.4	9.6	19.1	$23,994	$1,531	$5,618	$7,149	$12,107	$4,738	$16,845

Frequently Asked Questions about Darlington Middle

Is Darlington Middle a good school?

Darlington Middle ranks 208^th of 341 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Darlington Middle?

Students at Darlington Middle are 61% African American, 24% White, 11% Two or more races, 4% Hispanic.

What high school do graduates of Darlington Middle attend?

Students who attend Darlington Middle usually go on to attend Darlington High

What district is Darlington Middle in?

Darlington 01

How many students attend Darlington Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 888 students attended Darlington Middle.

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Schools in Darlington, SC

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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.