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Pelion High

Public Grades 9-12
154th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 245 South Carolina High Schools
Better than 37% of South Carolina high schools
Summary

Pelion High serves approximately 718 students in grades 9-12 in the rural town of Pelion, South Carolina, as part of the Lexington 01 school district.

Pelion High has shown meaningful improvement over the past few years, climbing from a very low ranking in 2021-2022 to its current position in the 37th percentile statewide. The school now ranks 154th out of 245 South Carolina high schools, a significant jump from being near the bottom just a few years ago. However, the school faces a serious challenge with chronic absenteeism—nearly half of students (48.1%) are chronically absent, which is more than double the district average of 22.7% and far higher than nearby Gilbert High (26.1%) or Lexington High (26.2%). This attendance crisis likely contributes to other struggles, including a graduation rate of 80.6% that trails the district average by 8.5 points and a dropout rate nearly three times the district rate. The school also shows a notable gap in English 1 proficiency (51.1%) compared to the district (72.0%), though students who persist to English 2 perform much better (79.2%).

On a positive note, Pelion High invests heavily in its students, spending $17,799 per student—more than any other school in the district—and maintains an excellent student-to-teacher ratio of 11.4:1. The school also demonstrates relative strength with Hispanic students, who rank in the 48th percentile statewide, and has shown improvement in U.S. History proficiency. When compared to White Knoll High, the most similar school in the district, Pelion has comparable graduation rates and English 1 scores, but significantly worse attendance and dropout numbers. The school appears to be at a turning point—with continued focus on attendance and early high school literacy support, it has the resources and momentum to build on its recent progress.

718
Students ?
11.4
Student/teacher ratio ?
$17,799
Per pupil spending ?
67.6%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 600 Lydia Drive
       Pelion, SC  29123

(803) 821-2200

District: Lexington 01


Feeder schools for Pelion High:

Elementary:    Forts Pond Elementary
    Pelion Elementary
Middle:    Pelion Middle
Racial breakdown:

White:
67.8%
Hispanic:
18.9%
African American:
6.3%
more
 See top rated South Carolina high schools

 Compare Pelion High to nearby high schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Rebounding — 8th percentile in 2022 → 37th in 2026
Strengths
Ranking is rebounding — up to 37th (2026) from a 8th-percentile low (2022)
Small classes — about 11 students per teacher
Worth a look
!Test scores below the South Carolina average (63% vs 69% meeting standards)
!Graduation rate below the South Carolina average (81% vs 87%)
!High chronic absenteeism (48% vs 22% South Carolina)
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school63%
District avg78%
South Carolina avg69%
154th of 245
South Carolina public high schools ?
Bottom 37%▼ down 18 pts since 2016
From top 45% (2016) to bottom 37% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of South Carolina High Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
5th of 5High Schools in the Lexington 01
14th of 75Lexington 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202638.2154 of 24537.1%★★☆☆☆
202532.0158 of 23532.8%★★☆☆☆
202432.1154 of 23534.5%★★☆☆☆
202315.7201 of 23715.2%★☆☆☆☆
20229.6208 of 2268.0%☆☆☆☆☆
202113.4200 of 22711.9%★☆☆☆☆
201933.5130 of 22542.2%★★☆☆☆
201842.398 of 21654.6%★★★☆☆
201739.0110 of 22350.7%★★★☆☆
201646.0104 of 23155.0%★★★☆☆
201542.5117 of 23249.6%★★★☆☆
201431.0151 of 21028.1%★☆☆☆☆
201330.2155 of 20323.6%★☆☆☆☆
201227.3157 of 20222.3%★☆☆☆☆
201147.7110 of 19944.7%★★☆☆☆
201052.0109 of 19945.2%★★☆☆☆
200961.280 of 18857.4%★★★☆☆
200871.753 of 18571.4%★★★★☆
200765.167 of 19164.9%★★★☆☆
200667.257 of 19170.2%★★★★☆
200570.548 of 18774.3%★★★★☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202621.5120 of 13611.8%★☆☆☆☆
202533.2100 of 13928.1%★☆☆☆☆
202441.983 of 14542.8%★★☆☆☆
202318.7120 of 14114.9%★☆☆☆☆
202228.899 of 13928.8%★☆☆☆☆
202125.890 of 11521.7%★☆☆☆☆
201940.382 of 14342.7%★★☆☆☆
201842.376 of 13744.5%★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202211.158 of 614.9%☆☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202637.3147 of 22735.2%★★☆☆☆
202539.7134 of 22540.4%★★☆☆☆
202442.5130 of 22542.2%★★☆☆☆
202313.5197 of 22311.7%★☆☆☆☆
20229.7204 of 2207.3%☆☆☆☆☆
202114.0186 of 21312.7%★☆☆☆☆
201932.7129 of 21339.4%★★☆☆☆
201839.9114 of 21045.7%★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202463.571 of 15754.8%★★★☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202649.565 of 12447.6%★★☆☆☆
202545.565 of 12146.3%★★☆☆☆
202439.682 of 12132.2%★★☆☆☆
20236.7115 of 1193.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20229.5105 of 1082.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202122.379 of 9315.1%★☆☆☆☆
201927.473 of 8615.1%★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202641.5144 of 23839.5%★★☆☆☆
202534.3156 of 22631.0%★★☆☆☆
202431.0166 of 22927.5%★☆☆☆☆
202316.5195 of 22613.7%★☆☆☆☆
202211.1204 of 2207.3%☆☆☆☆☆
202115.8186 of 21312.7%★☆☆☆☆
201939.5110 of 21749.3%★★★☆☆
201848.189 of 21458.4%★★★☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202636.0152 of 23134.2%★★☆☆☆
202531.2156 of 22430.4%★★☆☆☆
202426.6173 of 22824.1%★☆☆☆☆
202318.2187 of 22918.3%★☆☆☆☆
202210.5205 of 2248.5%☆☆☆☆☆
202112.0195 of 2159.3%☆☆☆☆☆
201935.4125 of 21842.7%★★☆☆☆
201845.495 of 21355.4%★★★☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankSouth Carolina percentileRating
202612.7186 of 2017.5%☆☆☆☆☆
202514.4174 of 19611.2%★☆☆☆☆
202410.9184 of 1966.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20234.0193 of 1972.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20221.7192 of 1920.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20211.6186 of 1891.6%☆☆☆☆☆
201915.5161 of 19115.7%★☆☆☆☆
201821.7146 of 18521.1%★☆☆☆☆
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)
Gifted and Talented (2024)55th percentile+20 vs school
Hispanic (2026)48th percentile+10 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)39th percentile~ school
Female (2026)35th percentile~ school
Male (2026)34th percentile-3 vs school
Disabled (2026)12th percentile-25 vs school
White (2026)7th percentile-30 vs school
English Language Learner (2022)5th percentile-3 vs school
By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?
English 279%-5 vs state
U.S. History and the Constitution56%-7 vs state
English 151%-10 vs state

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Schools Near Pelion High

Ranking:
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Frequently Asked Questions about Pelion High

Students at Pelion High are 68% White, 19% Hispanic, 6% African American, 6% Two or more races.

Pelion High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Forts Pond Elementary
Elementary : Pelion Elementary
Middle : Pelion Middle

In the 2024-25 school year, 718 students attended Pelion High.

Pelion High ranks 154th of 245 South Carolina high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

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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.

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