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Forts Pond Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

513^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 640 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 20% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Forts Pond Elementary is a public elementary school located in Pelion, South Carolina, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 505 students. The school is part of the Lexington 01 school district, which is ranked 18 out of 75 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite being part of a relatively high-performing district, Forts Pond Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom half of South Carolina elementary schools, with a 1-star or 2-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's performance is low across various student subgroups, particularly for disabled students, and it has had high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 22.5% to 31.1% over the past few years. Forts Pond Elementary's proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are consistently lower than the Lexington 01 district and the state of South Carolina.

Interestingly, Red Bank Elementary, Saxe Gotha Elementary, Deerfield Elementary, and Carolina Springs Elementary, which are also part of the Lexington 01 district, consistently outperform Forts Pond Elementary on state assessments and have higher rankings from SchoolDigger. This suggests that the school's underperformance may be due to factors beyond just funding and resources, and the district and school leadership may need to implement comprehensive school improvement strategies to address the root causes of the school's challenges.

478

Students ?

11.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,826

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

7350 Fish Hatchery Road
Pelion, SC 29123

(803) 821-2500

District: Lexington 01

Students who attend Forts Pond Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Pelion Middle
High:	Pelion High

Racial breakdown:

White:

60.0%

Hispanic:

23.8%

African American:

8.4%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare Forts Pond Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 23rd percentile in 2015 → 20th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (39% vs 56% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (20th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (36% vs 22% South Carolina)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school39%

District avg62%

South Carolina avg56%

513^th of 640

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 20%▼ down 4 pts since 2015

From bottom 23% (2015) to bottom 20% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

17^th of 17Elementary Schools in the Lexington 01

18^th 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	21.9	513 of 640	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.7	516 of 638	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.5	450 of 644	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	26.7	456 of 625	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.8	477 of 622	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.8	494 of 643	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.1	357 of 624	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2017	29.1	466 of 639	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	26.6	481 of 619	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	29.1	489 of 638	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	26.6	508 of 630	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	39.4	395 of 599	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2012	38.3	416 of 594	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2011	41.3	399 of 597	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2010	30.8	460 of 589	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	24.0	120 of 147	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.5	163 of 174	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	26.4	147 of 189	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	23.0	470 of 581	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.0	448 of 565	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	33.0	397 of 580	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	27.5	420 of 573	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	19.9	456 of 554	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.0	504 of 588	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	43.4	332 of 570	41.8%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	27.6	467 of 613	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	31.3	431 of 599	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.7	433 of 608	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.1	435 of 600	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.4	427 of 580	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	29.7	450 of 600	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	55.1	253 of 588	57.0%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	21.8	470 of 586	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.6	481 of 568	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.8	448 of 582	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.5	445 of 579	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.3	431 of 561	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.1	421 of 590	28.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.4	349 of 571	38.9%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	6.9	445 of 460	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.2	421 of 441	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.8	430 of 463	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.8	436 of 455	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.4	429 of 439	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.5	459 of 472	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.0	411 of 457	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)24th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2025)20th percentile~ school

Female (2025)19th percentile~ school

Disabled (2025)18th percentile~ school

White (2025)3rd percentile-17 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts50%-13 vs state

Mathematics35%-18 vs state

Science26%-23 vs state

★

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Schools Near Forts Pond Elementary

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				SC READY English Language Arts (2025)			SC READY Mathematics (2025)			SC READY Science (2025)	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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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 Mathematics 3rd Grade	SC READY Mathematics 4th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Science 4th 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
Forts Pond Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	7350 Fish Hatchery Road	Pelion	29123	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 821-2500	478	43	11.1		287 (60.0%)	40 (8.4%)	114 (23.8%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (7.1%)	21.9	513^th of 640 public elementary schools	19.8%		20.7	516^th of 638 public elementary schools	19.1%	3	47.6	45.4	57.5	34.4	34.9	34.9	25.6	$17,826	$1,594	$774	$2,368	$13,970	$1,489	$15,459
Pelion Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1202 Pine Street	Pelion	29123	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 821-2000	642	50	12.8		422 (65.7%)	43 (6.7%)	131 (20.4%)	2 (0.3%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (6.2%)	23.2	504^th of 640 public elementary schools	21.3%		21.2	509^th of 638 public elementary schools	20.2%	5	47.3	52.2	53.3	45.2	27.2	32.2	25.0	$17,679	$1,620	$688	$2,308	$13,696	$1,675	$15,371
Carolina Springs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	6340 Platt Springs Road	Lexington	29073	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 821-5100	438	39	11.3		238 (54.3%)	119 (27.2%)	38 (8.7%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (9.1%)	67.8	209^th of 640 public elementary schools	67.3%		53.8	294^th of 638 public elementary schools	53.9%	85	64.0	73.9	61.6	60.0	72.4	51.5	60.9	$14,004	$1,001	$616	$1,617	$10,748	$1,640	$12,388
South Lake Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	274 Bluefield Road	Lexington	29073	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(803) 821-1400	466	37	12.5		199 (42.7%)	163 (35.0%)	53 (11.4%)	12 (2.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (7.9%)								(n/a)
Sandhills Elementary	Public	3-4	130 Lewis Rast Road	Swansea	29160	Lexington County	Lexington 04	No	No	No	No	(803) 490-7003	491	38	13.0		236 (48.1%)	92 (18.7%)	134 (27.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	26 (5.3%)	28	463^rd of 640 public elementary schools	27.7%		28.8	455^th of 638 public elementary schools	28.7%	8	48.5	48.0		46.2	41.9		36.5	$13,560	$1,074	$1,219	$2,293	$9,637	$1,630	$11,267
Sandhills Primary	Public	1-2	140 Lewis Rast Road	Swansea	29160	Lexington County	Lexington 04	No	No	No	No	(803) 490-7002	509	36	14.1		267 (52.5%)	107 (21.0%)	96 (18.9%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (2.9%)	5 (1.0%)	18 (3.5%)								(n/a)								$13,497	$1,229	$1,469	$2,698	$9,516	$1,283	$10,799
Lexington Four Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	135 Lewis Rast Road	Swansea	26160	Lexington County	Lexington 04	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 490-7001	495	38	13.0		273 (55.2%)	128 (25.9%)	65 (13.1%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (1.0%)	5 (1.0%)	18 (3.6%)								(n/a)								$14,260	$3,084	$1,246	$4,330	$8,701	$1,229	$9,930
Deerfield Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	638 Longs Pond Road	Lexington	29073	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 821-5500	753	61	12.2		403 (53.5%)	155 (20.6%)	111 (14.7%)	23 (3.1%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	58 (7.7%)	58.6	265^th of 640 public elementary schools	58.6%		56.9	272^nd of 638 public elementary schools	57.4%	7	65.3	69.4	71.2	45.2	53.0	55.7	46.3	$14,838	$938	$588	$1,526	$11,735	$1,577	$13,312
Saxe Gotha Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	100 Bill Williamson Court	Lexington	29073	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 821-4800	499	44	11.2		256 (51.3%)	81 (16.2%)	101 (20.2%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	57 (11.4%)	52.5	293^rd of 640 public elementary schools	54.2%		42	370^th of 638 public elementary schools	42.0%	77	41.8	69.0	59.4	45.6	72.4	45.8	72.4	$18,479	$1,418	$709	$2,126	$14,628	$1,725	$16,353
Cyril B. Busbee Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	20 A.L. Corbett Circle	Wagener	29164	Aiken County	Aiken 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 564-1000	467	34	13.7		224 (48.0%)	154 (33.0%)	35 (7.5%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (10.5%)	20.5	527^th of 640 public elementary schools	17.7%		19.8	525^th of 638 public elementary schools	17.7%	2	47.2	36.9	61.9	47.2	15.8	28.5	23.6	$13,254	$806	$1,233	$2,038	$10,345	$870	$11,216

Frequently Asked Questions about Forts Pond Elementary

What district is Forts Pond Elementary in?

Lexington 01

How many students attend Forts Pond Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 478 students attended Forts Pond Elementary.

Is Forts Pond Elementary a good school?

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

What is the racial makeup of Forts Pond Elementary?

Students at Forts Pond Elementary are 60% White, 24% Hispanic, 8% African American, 7% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Forts Pond Elementary attend?

Students who attend Forts Pond Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Pelion Middle
High : Pelion High

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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.