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Southside Middle

Q: Is Southside Middle a good school?

Southside Middle ranks 185 th of 341 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

185^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 341 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 46% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

Southside Middle in Florence, SC, serves 1,138 students in grades 6 through 8 and is the largest middle school in the Florence 01 district, located in a community where 100% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.

The most impressive thing about Southside Middle is its Algebra 1 program. In the last two school years, 100% of students taking the Algebra 1 end-of-course exam scored proficient, far exceeding the district average of about 90% and the state average of 74%. This is a remarkable achievement that shows the school has a highly effective advanced math track. However, this success doesn't carry over to general math classes—6th and 7th grade math proficiency rates are below state averages, suggesting that while some students are being pushed to excel, many others are struggling with grade-level material. The school also showed dramatic improvement with Hispanic students, jumping from the 35th percentile statewide to the 66th percentile in a single year.

There are some concerns parents should know about. Chronic absenteeism has been climbing steadily and now sits at 29%, higher than both the district and state averages. Performance for students with disabilities has been very inconsistent, swinging from the 52nd percentile one year to the 10th the next. When compared to nearby schools, Southside actually uses its resources more efficiently than Henry L. Sneed Middle, which spends more per student but gets worse results. However, John W. Moore Middle, just a few miles away, outperforms Southside in nearly every subject. The school's 8th graders consistently do better than 6th and 7th graders, which suggests that students who stay at the school tend to improve over time.

1,138

Students ?

14.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,200

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

209 W. Jones Paul Road
Florence, SC 29505

(843) 664-8467

District: Florence 01

Students who attend Southside Middle usually attend:

High:

South Florence High

Feeder schools for Southside Middle:

Elementary:	Dewey-Carter Elementary
	Greenwood Elementary
	McLaurin Elementary
	Savannah Grove Elementary

Racial breakdown:

African American:

51.3%

White:

32.1%

Two or more races:

8.9%

See top rated South Carolina middle schools

Compare Southside Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 44th percentile in 2016 → 46th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (45% vs 51% meeting standards)

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school45%

District avg45%

South Carolina avg51%

185^th of 341

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 46%▲ up 2 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 4Middle Schools in the Florence 01

29^th of 75Florence 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	43.1	185 of 341	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	43.9	169 of 321	47.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.4	178 of 322	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.5	181 of 325	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	42.3	170 of 310	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	38.5	181 of 311	41.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	42.3	177 of 315	43.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.8	226 of 303	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	39.0	194 of 317	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2016	44.4	171 of 303	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2015	39.7	184 of 301	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2014	44.2	168 of 291	42.3%	★★☆☆☆
2013	52.1	142 of 276	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2012	52.3	143 of 271	47.2%	★★☆☆☆
2011	56.3	135 of 269	49.8%	★★★☆☆
2010	50.1	150 of 261	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2009	38.2	179 of 249	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	38.9	169 of 244	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2007	43.0	155 of 236	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2006	26.3	181 of 231	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	40.5	146 of 230	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2004	45.8	137 of 230	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2003	43.8	141 of 225	37.3%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	48.5	128 of 258	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	43.8	149 of 251	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.2	153 of 246	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.4	160 of 253	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	46.2	119 of 249	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2021	38.6	138 of 235	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	53.2	98 of 252	61.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	27.4	192 of 237	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	20.3	174 of 192	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	46.4	88 of 184	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	20.1	165 of 177	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	29.6	142 of 187	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.9	150 of 183	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	30.6	119 of 164	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.0	110 of 195	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	26.3	158 of 194	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2019	53.3	47 of 117	59.8%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	47.4	162 of 310	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	44.7	157 of 295	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.7	160 of 293	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	44.5	166 of 299	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.5	148 of 290	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	39.4	167 of 279	40.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	43.9	168 of 296	43.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	28.4	206 of 281	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	58.6	108 of 197	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	73.6	32 of 173	81.5%	★★★★☆
2024	42.0	138 of 184	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	38.3	135 of 185	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	57.7	94 of 182	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.7	147 of 179	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	60.5	54 of 159	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	35.1	101 of 156	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	36.9	93 of 144	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	52.0	62 of 141	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	39.1	94 of 139	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	33.8	98 of 123	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	37.6	197 of 325	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	37.8	193 of 308	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.2	198 of 304	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.4	196 of 313	37.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.4	180 of 300	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	39.8	163 of 288	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	42.5	166 of 289	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	23.4	234 of 280	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	36.3	193 of 310	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	41.5	172 of 298	42.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.6	161 of 292	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.7	184 of 303	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.9	181 of 292	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	35.5	177 of 279	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	41.8	174 of 296	41.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	24.0	222 of 284	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	19.7	56 of 65	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	39.1	38 of 63	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	49.3	23 of 52	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	37.3	43 of 58	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	44.6	21 of 31	32.3%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	60.1	101 of 271	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2025	66.3	77 of 259	70.3%	★★★★☆
2024	64.1	81 of 256	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.5	104 of 260	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.5	124 of 249	50.2%	★★★☆☆
2021	44.2	132 of 244	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	43.6	145 of 258	43.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	24.8	189 of 250	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Hispanic (2026)66th percentile+20 vs school

White (2026)63rd percentile+17 vs school

English Language Learner (2019)60th percentile+16 vs school

African American (2026)50th percentile+5 vs school

Female (2026)48th percentile~ school

Gifted and Talented (2026)45th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)39th percentile-6 vs school

Male (2026)38th percentile-8 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)14th percentile-32 vs school

Disabled (2026)9th percentile-36 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts53%-6 vs state

Science50%~ state avg

Mathematics36%-7 vs state

3.0

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What people are saying

by a student
Monday, October 29, 2018

This school sucks don't come here its terrible if you do i feel bad for you. Close Quote

Schools Near Southside 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
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
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
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
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
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
Ronald E. McNair Junior High	Public	7-8	311 Carver Street	Lake City	29560	Florence County	Florence 03	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 374-8651	275	18	15.7	100.0%	21 (7.6%)	226 (82.2%)	19 (6.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.9%)	16.7	299^th of 341 public middle schools	12.3%		11.2	301^st of 321 public middle schools	6.2%	2		47.9	43.2		14.4	18.6		$17,708	$2,295	$1,773	$4,068	$10,188	$3,452	$13,640

Frequently Asked Questions about Southside Middle

Is Southside Middle a good school?

Southside Middle ranks 185^th of 341 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Southside Middle?

Students at Southside Middle are 51% African American, 32% White, 9% Two or more races, 6% Hispanic, 1% Asian.

What high school do graduates of Southside Middle attend?

Students who attend Southside Middle usually go on to attend South Florence High

What district is Southside Middle in?

Florence 01

How many students attend Southside Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,138 students attended Southside Middle.

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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.