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St. James High

Q: Is St. James High a good school?

St. James High ranks 25 th of 248 South Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 5 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

25^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 248 South Carolina High Schools

Better than 90% of South Carolina high schools

Summary

St. James High in Murrells Inlet, SC, is a large public high school serving 1,826 students in grades 9-12 within the Horry 01 school district, and it has earned a reputation as one of the top-performing schools in the state.

This school is a standout, particularly in math. An incredible 97% of students scored proficient on the Algebra 1 exam, compared to just 65% statewide. That's a huge advantage that has actually grown over the past few years. The school also shines in English, with over 92% of students proficient in English 2, and it boasts a very low dropout rate of 0.8%. What's especially impressive is how well St. James supports students who often face challenges. It ranks in the 96th percentile for its work with disabled students and in the 94th percentile for supporting students from low-income families. The graduation rate is strong at 91.5% and has been steadily climbing. When compared to nearby schools, St. James outperforms Myrtle Beach High and Socastee High by a wide margin in test scores, though it trails the highly selective HCS Scholars Academy High, which serves a much smaller, specialized group of students.

While the overall picture is very positive, there are a couple of areas to watch. Chronic absenteeism is a concern, with 24.4% of students missing significant school time—higher than both the district and state averages. Also, while the school excels with many student groups, its highest-achieving students (gifted and talented) rank only in the 54th percentile, suggesting they may not be as challenged. Additionally, performance with military-connected students has dropped recently. For most families, St. James High offers a rigorous, supportive environment with exceptional results, but it's worth asking about programs for top performers and how the school is addressing attendance.

1,826

Students ?

17.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,791

Per pupil spending ?

43%

Free/discounted lunch ?

10800 Highway 707
Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

(843) 650-5600

District: Horry 01

Feeder schools for St. James High:

Elementary:	Burgess Elementary
	Seaside Elementary
	St. James Elementary
Middle:	St. James Intermediate
	St. James Middle

Racial breakdown:

White:

73.2%

Hispanic:

12.7%

African American:

6.4%

See top rated South Carolina high schools

Compare St. James High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 89th percentile in 2016 → 90th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the South Carolina average (86% vs 69% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 10% of South Carolina high schools

✓92% graduate in 4 years — above the South Carolina average (87%)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school86%

District avg77%

South Carolina avg69%

25^th of 248

South Carolina public high schools ?

Top 10%▲ up 1 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 12High Schools in the Horry 01

9^th of 75Horry 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	88.0	25 of 248	89.9%	★★★★★
2025	80.8	24 of 240	90.0%	★★★★★
2024	82.1	23 of 243	90.5%	★★★★★
2023	85.8	18 of 237	92.4%	★★★★★
2022	83.0	21 of 226	90.7%	★★★★★
2021	83.1	16 of 227	93.0%	★★★★★
2019	75.2	17 of 225	92.4%	★★★★★
2018	78.0	9 of 216	95.8%	★★★★★
2017	75.1	15 of 223	93.3%	★★★★★
2016	76.4	25 of 231	89.2%	★★★★☆
2015	76.8	23 of 232	90.1%	★★★★★
2014	83.2	29 of 210	86.2%	★★★★☆
2013	78.2	41 of 203	79.8%	★★★★☆
2012	75.2	45 of 202	77.7%	★★★★☆
2011	86.2	25 of 199	87.4%	★★★★☆
2010	71.8	49 of 199	75.4%	★★★★☆
2009	83.6	17 of 188	91.0%	★★★★★
2008	68.4	60 of 185	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2007	68.0	56 of 191	70.7%	★★★★☆
2006	72.9	28 of 191	85.3%	★★★★☆
2005	68.3	63 of 187	66.3%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	86.8	13 of 196	93.4%	★★★★★
2024	82.5	15 of 197	92.4%	★★★★★
2023	89.4	12 of 199	94.0%	★★★★★
2022	88.3	12 of 190	93.7%	★★★★★
2021	88.6	7 of 178	96.1%	★★★★★
2019	66.2	37 of 184	79.9%	★★★★☆
2018	79.3	15 of 183	91.8%	★★★★★

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	94.7	5 of 136	96.3%	★★★★★
2025	81.0	16 of 140	88.6%	★★★★☆
2024	80.6	24 of 147	83.7%	★★★★☆
2023	96.0	2 of 141	98.6%	★★★★★
2022	88.9	10 of 139	92.8%	★★★★★
2021	94.6	1 of 115	99.1%	★★★★★
2019	94.1	3 of 143	97.9%	★★★★★
2018	91.6	5 of 137	96.4%	★★★★★

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2024	61.0	29 of 71	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.4	26 of 68	61.8%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	86.6	25 of 229	89.1%	★★★★☆
2025	83.9	21 of 229	90.8%	★★★★★
2024	83.6	22 of 231	90.5%	★★★★★
2023	83.6	19 of 223	91.5%	★★★★★
2022	78.6	25 of 220	88.6%	★★★★☆
2021	82.4	18 of 213	91.5%	★★★★★
2019	73.2	23 of 213	89.2%	★★★★☆
2018	75.6	16 of 210	92.4%	★★★★★

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	64.8	72 of 155	53.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	69.3	33 of 154	78.6%	★★★★☆
2024	67.2	54 of 158	65.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	67.3	48 of 156	69.2%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	83.8	11 of 124	91.1%	★★★★★
2025	76.4	21 of 122	82.8%	★★★★☆
2024	76.0	24 of 122	80.3%	★★★★☆
2023	66.5	32 of 119	73.1%	★★★★☆
2022	89.2	5 of 108	95.4%	★★★★★
2021	71.8	16 of 93	82.8%	★★★★☆
2019	70.3	17 of 86	80.2%	★★★★☆
2018	74.1	15 of 80	81.3%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	91.7	14 of 241	94.2%	★★★★★
2025	87.4	11 of 230	95.2%	★★★★★
2024	87.5	14 of 235	94.0%	★★★★★
2023	90.2	12 of 226	94.7%	★★★★★
2022	85.6	12 of 220	94.5%	★★★★★
2021	86.4	9 of 213	95.8%	★★★★★
2019	83.0	7 of 217	96.8%	★★★★★
2018	83.3	6 of 214	97.2%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	86.9	23 of 233	90.1%	★★★★★
2025	79.7	25 of 228	89.0%	★★★★☆
2024	80.6	24 of 234	89.7%	★★★★★
2023	86.7	17 of 229	92.6%	★★★★★
2022	85.1	19 of 224	91.5%	★★★★★
2021	83.0	19 of 215	91.2%	★★★★★
2019	79.6	16 of 218	92.7%	★★★★★
2018	81.7	10 of 213	95.3%	★★★★★

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	45.5	14 of 21	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	66.1	3 of 21	85.7%	★★★★★

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	70.6	15 of 61	75.4%	★★★★☆
2025	66.7	17 of 59	71.2%	★★★★☆
2024	76.9	10 of 53	81.1%	★★★★☆
2023	74.5	15 of 57	73.7%	★★★★☆
2022	71.0	11 of 48	77.1%	★★★★☆
2018	77.6	5 of 22	77.3%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	78.7	36 of 203	82.3%	★★★★☆
2025	70.2	49 of 200	75.5%	★★★★☆
2024	71.8	46 of 202	77.2%	★★★★☆
2023	79.5	27 of 197	86.3%	★★★★☆
2022	71.6	39 of 192	79.7%	★★★★☆
2021	72.3	37 of 189	80.4%	★★★★☆
2019	70.3	28 of 191	85.3%	★★★★☆
2018	71.4	32 of 185	82.7%	★★★★☆

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)

Disabled (2026)96th percentile+6 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)94th percentile+4 vs school

African American (2025)93rd percentile+3 vs school

Hispanic (2026)91st percentile~ school

Male (2026)90th percentile~ school

Female (2026)89th percentile~ school

White (2026)82nd percentile-8 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)75th percentile-15 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)59th percentile-31 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)54th percentile-36 vs school

Military Connected (2026)33rd percentile-57 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 297%+32 vs state

English 293%+9 vs state

Biology 1/Applied Biology 284%+23 vs state

U.S. History and the Constitution78%+15 vs state

★

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Schools Near St. James 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 Biology 1/Applied Biology 2 (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 Biology 1/Applied Biology 2 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
St. James High	Public	9-12	10800 Highway 707	Murrells Inlet	29576	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 650-5600	1,826	104	17.5	43.0%	1,337 (73.2%)	116 (6.4%)	231 (12.7%)	31 (1.7%)	4 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	107 (5.9%)	88	25^th of 248 public high schools	89.9%		80.8	24^th of 240 public high schools	90.0%	1	97.1	83.7	78.0	92.8	$13,791	$623	$434	$1,057	$11,003	$1,731	$12,733
Socastee High	Public	9-12	4900 Socastee Boulevard	Myrtle Beach	29588	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 293-2513	1,720	95	18.1	45.3%	1,051 (61.1%)	135 (7.8%)	373 (21.7%)	34 (2.0%)	4 (0.2%)	7 (0.4%)	116 (6.7%)	73.6	56^th of 248 public high schools	77.4%		69	52^nd of 240 public high schools	78.3%	4	55.2	72.0	75.5	86.8	$14,081	$686	$426	$1,111	$11,278	$1,691	$12,969
Coastal High School	Public, Charter	9-12	2100 River Oaks Drive	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Limestone Charters Association	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(843) 788-9898	198	21	9.6	52.1%	139 (70.2%)	24 (12.1%)	19 (9.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (7.6%)	64.5	83^rd of 248 public high schools	66.5%		53.4	98^th of 240 public high schools	59.2%	15		63.9	61.4	88.2	$14,745	$831	$69	$899	$7,316	$6,530	$13,846
Carolina Forest High	Public	9-12	700 Gardner Lacy Road	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 236-7997	3,176	165	19.3	44.7%	1,788 (56.3%)	437 (13.8%)	639 (20.1%)	72 (2.3%)	13 (0.4%)	3 (0.1%)	224 (7.1%)	78.2	46^th of 248 public high schools	81.5%		72.9	44^th of 240 public high schools	81.7%	2	80.9	70.3	73.4	90.4	$12,194	$659	$390	$1,049	$9,682	$1,464	$11,146
Waccamaw High	Public	9-12	2412 Kings River Road	Pawleys Island	29585	Georgetown County	Georgetown 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 237-9899	808	54	14.9	41.4%	609 (75.4%)	124 (15.3%)	43 (5.3%)	5 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (3.2%)	87.4	26^th of 248 public high schools	89.5%		74.8	39^th of 240 public high schools	83.8%	13		75.1	85.6	93.0	$13,730	$706	$401	$1,106	$10,592	$2,032	$12,624
HCS Early College High	Public, Magnet	9-12	2050 Highway 501 East HGTC	Conway	29528	Horry County	Horry 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 349-3131	360	23	15.6	57.6%	151 (41.9%)	101 (28.1%)	81 (22.5%)	5 (1.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.8%)	96.8	5^th of 248 public high schools	98.0%		93.2	6^th of 240 public high schools	97.5%	1		96.1	90.7	100.0	$14,777	$1,137	$665	$1,802	$11,289	$1,686	$12,975
Myrtle Beach High	Public	9-12	3302 Robert Grissom Parkway	Myrtle Beach	29577	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 839-7148	1,510	84	18.0	58.6%	539 (35.7%)	331 (21.9%)	481 (31.9%)	32 (2.1%)	4 (0.3%)	5 (0.3%)	118 (7.8%)	41.7	152^nd of 248 public high schools	38.7%		40.9	139^th of 240 public high schools	42.1%	13		59.2	60.5	73.5	$13,613	$778	$398	$1,176	$10,701	$1,736	$12,437
Palmetto Academy of Learning Motorsports (PALM)	Public, Charter	9-12	826 West Cox Ferry Road	Conway	29526	Horry County	Horry 01	Yes	No	No	Yes	(843) 903-6600	195	13	15.0	40.5%	167 (85.6%)	5 (2.6%)	14 (7.2%)	1 (0.5%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.6%)	35.7	160^th of 248 public high schools	35.5%		62.2	72^nd of 240 public high schools	70.0%	88		44.2	56.4	80.0	$17,355	$1,001	$161	$1,162	$10,296	$5,897	$16,193
HCS Scholars Academy High	Public	9-12	642 Century Circle	Conway	29526	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 349-4117	209	13	16.7	1.6%	158 (75.6%)	9 (4.3%)	8 (3.8%)	21 (10.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (6.2%)	98.1	1^st of 248 public high schools	99.6%		97.7	1^st of 240 public high schools	99.6%			100.0	100.0	100.0	$14,110	$154	$122	$276	$12,432	$1,402	$13,834
Academy For Arts/Science/Technology	Public, Magnet	9-12	895 International Drive	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Horry 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 903-8460	0	43	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)

Frequently Asked Questions about St. James High

What is the racial makeup of St. James High?

Students at St. James High are 73% White, 13% Hispanic, 6% African American, 6% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

What schools feed into St. James High?

St. James High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Burgess Elementary
Elementary : Seaside Elementary
Elementary : St. James Elementary
Middle : St. James Intermediate
Middle : St. James Middle

Is St. James High a good school?

St. James High ranks 25^th of 248 South Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 5 stars out of 5.

What district is St. James High in?

Horry 01

How many students attend St. James High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,826 students attended St. James High.

Rate St. James High!

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Schools in Murrells Inlet, 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.