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McDonald Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

530^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 661 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 20% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

McDonald Elementary is a PK-5 school in Georgetown, SC, serving 389 students in the Georgetown 01 district, where every student qualifies for free or reduced lunch.

McDonald Elementary shows a clear split between subjects. In 2025-2026, about half of students in grades 3-5 scored proficient in English Language Arts (49-52%), which is a real strength and more consistent than many nearby schools. However, math proficiency lags significantly, with only 34-39% of students meeting standards—well below state averages. Science is also a challenge, with just 27.4% of 4th graders proficient compared to 51.6% statewide. The school's overall ranking places it in the bottom quarter of South Carolina elementary schools, though it has stabilized in the 20-24th percentile range over the past few years after dipping lower. One bright spot: the school performs at the state median for its African American students, a notable achievement given the overall ranking. Chronic absenteeism is also a positive differentiator at 19.4%, below both the district (20.2%) and state (22.3%) averages, which suggests strong family engagement despite the high-poverty population.

The most urgent concern is a widening gender gap. In 2023-2024, boys and girls performed nearly identically, but by 2025-2026, female students rank in the 24th percentile while male students have dropped to the 12th percentile—a 12-point gap that deserves attention. A comparison with Kensington Elementary, just 1.77 miles away, is telling: both schools serve similar demographics, yet Kensington outperforms McDonald by 20+ percentage points in 5th grade math (59.2% vs. 34%) and 5th grade ELA (73.3% vs. 52%). This suggests the achievement gap isn't simply about poverty but may relate to instructional strategies or leadership. McDonald spends a relatively high $18,156 per student, providing resources that could support meaningful improvement if directed toward math intervention and support for male students.

389

Students ?

10.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,156

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

532 McDonald Road
Georgetown, SC 29440

(843) 527-3485

District: Georgetown 01

Students who attend McDonald Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Georgetown Middle
High:	Georgetown High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

57.3%

White:

28.3%

Hispanic:

11.1%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare McDonald Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 13th percentile in 2016 → 20th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 7 percentile points since 2016

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (41% vs 58% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (20th percentile)

!Science scores 24 pts below the South Carolina average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school41%

District avg49%

South Carolina avg58%

530^th of 661

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 20%▲ up 7 pts since 2016

From bottom 13% (2016) to bottom 20% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 8Elementary Schools in the Georgetown 01

51^st of 75Georgetown 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	20.7	530 of 661	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.8	500 of 639	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.9	487 of 643	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.8	526 of 644	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.7	553 of 625	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.1	554 of 622	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.1	543 of 643	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.4	528 of 624	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	24.8	493 of 639	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	18.4	538 of 619	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	23.1	542 of 638	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	23.4	541 of 630	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	18.0	535 of 599	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	34.8	431 of 594	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	33.8	444 of 597	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	26.5	488 of 589	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	21.2	505 of 580	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	53.7	288 of 577	50.1%	★★★☆☆
2007	49.6	316 of 566	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2006	44.0	356 of 559	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2005	42.2	360 of 557	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2004	50.6	303 of 550	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2003	44.2	334 of 542	38.4%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	46.3	194 of 384	49.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	45.4	210 of 380	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	53.3	156 of 369	57.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	32.5	285 of 394	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.9	346 of 393	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.6	314 of 350	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.7	320 of 421	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.1	353 of 412	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	28.2	452 of 599	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	24.6	451 of 580	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.8	436 of 568	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	499 of 580	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.9	506 of 573	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	7.1	536 of 554	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.3	530 of 588	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.7	524 of 570	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	30.6	456 of 634	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	34.3	418 of 612	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	33.7	423 of 602	29.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	501 of 608	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.8	549 of 600	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.9	532 of 580	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	18.8	527 of 600	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	514 of 588	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	16.0	520 of 591	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	22.3	465 of 585	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.9	450 of 571	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.1	455 of 582	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.1	513 of 579	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.1	476 of 561	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.7	470 of 590	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.8	442 of 571	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2023	28.3	362 of 463	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	11.9	442 of 472	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.6	430 of 457	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)49th percentile+30 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)28th percentile+8 vs school

Female (2026)25th percentile+5 vs school

White (2023)22nd percentile+3 vs school

Male (2026)12th percentile-8 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts50%-14 vs state

Mathematics36%-17 vs state

Science27%-24 vs state

★

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Schools Near McDonald Elementary

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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
McDonald Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	532 McDonald Road	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 527-3485	389	36	10.7	100.0%	110 (28.3%)	223 (57.3%)	43 (11.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.3%)	20.7	530^th of 661 public elementary schools	19.8%		23.8	500^th of 639 public elementary schools	21.8%	30	50.0	49.0	52.0				35.0	39.2	34.0				27.4		$18,156	$1,954	$1,286	$3,240	$12,912	$2,004	$14,916
Kensington Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	86 Kensington Boulevard	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 546-8511	548	41	13.4	100.0%	293 (53.5%)	176 (32.1%)	49 (8.9%)	7 (1.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.0%)	43.1	376^th of 661 public elementary schools	43.1%		46.7	330^th of 639 public elementary schools	48.4%	46	56.0	58.8	73.3				36.0	49.4	59.2				32.9		$15,355	$1,363	$785	$2,147	$11,450	$1,758	$13,208
Maryville Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2125 Poplar Street	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 546-8423	444	39	11.2	100.0%	172 (38.7%)	190 (42.8%)	78 (17.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	12.3	609^th of 661 public elementary schools	7.9%		25.8	481^st of 639 public elementary schools	24.7%	128	48.1	43.3	40.7				34.6	32.4	26.6				17.7		$15,430	$1,467	$920	$2,387	$11,233	$1,809	$13,042
Brown's Ferry Elementary School for the Creative and Perform	Public	PK, KG-5	7292 Brown's Ferry Road	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 527-1325	163	15	10.7	100.0%	9 (5.5%)	143 (87.7%)	5 (3.1%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.5%)	15.4	587^th of 661 public elementary schools	11.2%		9.8	602^nd of 639 public elementary schools	5.8%	15	40.9	58.6	48.0				18.2	24.1	24.0				27.6		$21,716	$2,884	$3,158	$6,042	$12,938	$2,736	$15,674
Sampit Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	69 Woodland Avenue	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 527-4411	270	24	11.2	100.0%	83 (30.7%)	162 (60.0%)	19 (7.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)	9	636^th of 661 public elementary schools	3.8%		9.3	606^th of 639 public elementary schools	5.2%	30	41.9	25.0	30.6				48.4	20.4	27.7				13.6		$17,921	$1,287	$1,574	$2,861	$13,035	$2,026	$15,060
Coastal Montessori Charter	Public, Charter	1-8	111 Old Plantation Drive	Pawleys Island	29585	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	Yes	No	No	No	(843) 235-0413	242	22	11.0	47.7%	188 (77.7%)	22 (9.1%)	18 (7.4%)	4 (1.7%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.7%)	24	508^th of 661 public elementary schools	23.1%		39.7	381^st of 639 public elementary schools	40.4%	127	67.6	53.1	59.2	48.1	72.0	75.0	35.3	18.8	18.5	22.2	44.0	40.7	25.1	29.6	$14,307	$611	$354	$965	$10,765	$2,578	$13,343
Plantersville Elementary Digital Immersion School	Public	PK, KG-5	1668 Exodus Drive	Georgetown	29440	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 546-8453	78	12	6.3	100.0%	0 (0.0%)	74 (94.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (5.1%)								(n/a)															$32,548	$4,677	$4,604	$9,281	$20,097	$3,170	$23,267
Waccamaw Elementary	Public	PK, KG-3	1364 Waverly Road	Pawleys Island	29585	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 237-4233	543	41	13.1	100.0%	396 (72.9%)	80 (14.7%)	35 (6.4%)	5 (0.9%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	24 (4.4%)								(n/a)	84.9						74.6								$14,891	$1,662	$800	$2,462	$10,904	$1,525	$12,429
Andrews Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	13072 County Line Road	Andrews	29510	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 264-3419	604	48	12.6	100.0%	266 (44.0%)	266 (44.0%)	48 (7.9%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (3.3%)	27.6	479^th of 661 public elementary schools	27.5%		31.2	439^th of 639 public elementary schools	31.3%	40	46.2	49.4	56.7				40.8	40.3	48.9				27.3		$15,995	$1,829	$1,013	$2,842	$11,539	$1,613	$13,153
Pleasant Hill Elementary STREAM Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	127 Schoolhouse Road	Hemingway	29554	Williamsburg County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	Yes	(843) 558-9417	301	25	11.8	100.0%	152 (50.5%)	129 (42.9%)	10 (3.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.7%)	40.8	395^th of 661 public elementary schools	40.2%		54.5	279^th of 639 public elementary schools	56.3%	116	46.8	86.9	54.7				43.7	76.3	20.7				55.3		$18,930	$2,588	$1,792	$4,380	$12,263	$2,288	$14,550

Frequently Asked Questions about McDonald Elementary

What schools do graduates of McDonald Elementary attend?

Students who attend McDonald Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Georgetown Middle
High : Georgetown High

What is the racial makeup of McDonald Elementary?

Students at McDonald Elementary are 57% African American, 28% White, 11% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races.

What district is McDonald Elementary in?

Georgetown 01

How many students attend McDonald Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 389 students attended McDonald Elementary.

Is McDonald Elementary a good school?

McDonald Elementary ranks in the bottom 19.8% of South Carolina elementary schools.

Rate McDonald Elementary!

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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.