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Leaphart Elementary

Q: Is Leaphart Elementary a good school?

Leaphart Elementary ranks 347 th of 649 South Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public, Magnet Grades PK, KG-5

347^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 649 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 47% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Leaphart Elementary is a PK-5 school in Columbia, SC, serving 483 students within the Lexington 05 district—a district ranked 13th out of 75 in South Carolina. The school has shown steady improvement over the past five years, climbing from the 32nd percentile statewide to its current 47th percentile ranking, and it serves a predominantly low-income population with 100% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch.

The most striking success story at Leaphart is its work with African American students, who now rank in the top quartile statewide (75th percentile)—a dramatic 22-point jump from just two years prior. This is particularly notable given the school's overall middle-of-the-pack ranking. However, a significant gender gap has emerged: female students rank at the 64th percentile while male students rank at just the 28th percentile, a 36-point divide that has widened considerably in recent years. Academically, students consistently perform better in English Language Arts than in math, with 4th graders showing particular strength—68% proficient in ELA versus 55.2% in math. Science remains a challenge, trailing the district by nearly 13 points.

Compared to nearby schools, Leaphart outperforms Dutch Fork Elementary (29th percentile) and Seven Oaks Elementary (18th percentile) while trailing Irmo Elementary (65th percentile). The school also significantly outperforms nearby Richland 01 schools like Sandel Elementary (8th percentile) despite serving similar demographics. The biggest barrier to further improvement is chronic absenteeism at 23.2%—well above the district average of 15%—which has remained stubbornly high for years. With a favorable 10.7:1 student-teacher ratio and efficient spending compared to peers, Leaphart appears well-positioned to continue its upward trajectory if it can address attendance and support its male students.

483

Students ?

10.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,698

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

120 Piney Grove Road
Columbia, SC 29210

(803) 476-4700

District: Lexington 05

Students who attend Leaphart Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	CrossRoads Intermediate
	Irmo Middle
High:	Irmo High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

49.9%

White:

28.4%

Hispanic:

9.5%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare Leaphart Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 40th percentile in 2016 → 47th in 2026

Strengths

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

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school53%

District avg64%

South Carolina avg58%

347^th of 649

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 47%▲ up 7 pts since 2016

From bottom 40% (2016) to bottom 47% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

9^th of 13Elementary Schools in the Lexington 05

13^th of 75Lexington 05 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	45.3	347 of 649	46.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	44.6	344 of 640	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.3	346 of 638	45.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.5	405 of 644	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.5	413 of 625	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	32.1	420 of 622	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.1	419 of 643	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	34.7	410 of 624	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	44.4	355 of 639	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2016	41.1	372 of 619	39.9%	★★☆☆☆
2015	48.8	321 of 638	49.7%	★★☆☆☆
2014	58.0	277 of 630	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2013	39.1	400 of 599	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	40.6	397 of 594	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2011	34.7	438 of 597	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	40.6	387 of 589	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2009	47.1	336 of 580	42.1%	★★☆☆☆
2008	55.3	279 of 577	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2007	49.7	315 of 566	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2006	60.9	239 of 559	57.2%	★★★☆☆
2005	65.7	196 of 557	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2004	78.2	100 of 550	81.8%	★★★★☆
2003	80.2	94 of 542	82.7%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	66.6	94 of 379	75.2%	★★★★☆
2025	51.4	178 of 381	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.6	173 of 369	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	49.4	187 of 394	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.0	211 of 393	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	38.1	225 of 350	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.0	274 of 421	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.1	208 of 412	49.5%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	62.7	212 of 589	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	46.3	304 of 581	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.3	325 of 565	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.4	326 of 580	43.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	42.9	328 of 573	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.6	345 of 554	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	42.1	358 of 588	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	47.1	300 of 570	47.4%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	42.2	369 of 624	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	44.4	333 of 613	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	49.8	299 of 599	50.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	42.2	357 of 608	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.6	416 of 600	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.7	423 of 580	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.6	409 of 600	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.5	390 of 588	33.7%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	28.2	419 of 583	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	40.3	358 of 586	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.2	317 of 568	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	29.0	418 of 582	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.7	431 of 579	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.4	426 of 561	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.6	440 of 590	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.8	456 of 571	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	67.6	161 of 454	64.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	57.9	202 of 460	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	55.6	213 of 441	51.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	54.5	224 of 463	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.4	278 of 455	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	54.3	227 of 472	51.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.3	248 of 457	45.7%	★★☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)75th percentile+29 vs school

White (2026)65th percentile+18 vs school

Female (2026)64th percentile+17 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)41st percentile-6 vs school

Male (2026)28th percentile-18 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts60%-4 vs state

Mathematics49%-4 vs state

Science44%-8 vs state

★

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Schools Near Leaphart 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	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 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
Leaphart Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	120 Piney Grove Road	Columbia	29210	Lexington County	Lexington 05	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 476-4700	483	45	10.7		137 (28.4%)	241 (49.9%)	46 (9.5%)	9 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.7%)	36 (7.5%)	45.3	347^th of 649 public elementary schools	46.5%		44.6	344^th of 640 public elementary schools	46.3%	3	53.5	68.0	59.2	45.1	55.2	47.3	43.6	$16,698	$1,324	$1,122	$2,446	$12,516	$1,736	$14,252
Seven Oaks Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	2800 Ashland Road	Columbia	29210	Lexington County	Lexington 05	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 476-8500	522	56	9.3		66 (12.6%)	329 (63.0%)	47 (9.0%)	43 (8.2%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (1.0%)	31 (5.9%)	19.2	534^th of 649 public elementary schools	17.7%		17.1	549^th of 640 public elementary schools	14.2%	15	52.0	53.3	41.7	41.3	36.4	21.9	31.2	$18,362	$1,567	$860	$2,427	$14,251	$1,684	$15,935
Nursery Road Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	6706 Nursery Road	Columbia	29212	Lexington County	Lexington 05	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 476-4300	471	54	8.7		160 (34.0%)	196 (41.6%)	46 (9.8%)	14 (3.0%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	52 (11.0%)	40.3	394^th of 649 public elementary schools	39.3%		53.2	289^th of 640 public elementary schools	54.8%	105	55.4	64.0	57.1	50.7	52.0	35.7	41.3	$19,158	$1,770	$791	$2,561	$14,862	$1,736	$16,598
Harbison West Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	257 Crossbow Drive	Columbia	29212	Lexington County	Lexington 05	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 476-3800	510	57	8.9		114 (22.4%)	285 (55.9%)	47 (9.2%)	17 (3.3%)	4 (0.8%)	2 (0.4%)	41 (8.0%)	42	380^th of 649 public elementary schools	41.4%		46.7	329^th of 640 public elementary schools	48.6%	51	68.0	66.3	43.6	61.4	43.0	33.8	40.7	$19,019	$1,572	$883	$2,455	$15,019	$1,544	$16,563
Pine Grove Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	111 Huffstetler Drive	Columbia	29210	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 214-2380	501	39	12.8		37 (7.4%)	369 (73.7%)	55 (11.0%)	8 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (6.2%)	16.7	560^th of 649 public elementary schools	13.7%		13.2	577^th of 640 public elementary schools	9.8%	17	49.2	43.3	51.7	41.2	17.0	32.7	26.7	$20,151	$2,457	$1,457	$3,913	$13,954	$2,284	$16,237
Irmo Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	7401 Gibbes Street	Irmo	29063	Lexington County	Lexington 05	No	No	No	No	(803) 476-4200	487	41	12.0		282 (57.9%)	114 (23.4%)	46 (9.4%)	5 (1.0%)	2 (0.4%)	2 (0.4%)	36 (7.4%)	63.8	228^th of 649 public elementary schools	64.9%		67	211^th of 640 public elementary schools	67.0%	17	75.4	65.8	71.9	72.3	52.1	43.7	53.5	$15,401	$788	$464	$1,252	$12,145	$2,004	$14,149
Sandel Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2700 Seminole Road	Columbia	29210	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 731-8906	479	36	13.3		7 (1.5%)	375 (78.3%)	59 (12.3%)	17 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (4.4%)	12.9	594^th of 649 public elementary schools	8.5%		13.6	574^th of 640 public elementary schools	10.3%	20	33.4	46.9	44.8	27.0	26.6	34.3	28.1	$18,452	$1,797	$1,495	$3,292	$12,749	$2,411	$15,160
Meadow Glen Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	510 Ginny Lane	Lexington	29072	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 821-0400	775	61	12.8		439 (56.6%)	58 (7.5%)	80 (10.3%)	153 (19.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (5.8%)	86	80^th of 649 public elementary schools	87.7%		82.1	102^nd of 640 public elementary schools	84.1%	22	74.2	79.4	78.5	79.4	76.8	68.9	65.6	$14,334	$691	$379	$1,070	$11,979	$1,286	$13,264
GREEN Charter School Midlands	Public, Charter	K-8	7820 Broad River Road	Irmo	29063	Richland County	School Public Charter School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(803) 563-5387	258	26	9.9		54 (20.9%)	156 (60.5%)	25 (9.7%)	3 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (7.8%)	30.2	454^th of 649 public elementary schools	30.0%		23	505^th of 640 public elementary schools	21.1%	51	48.3		66.7	48.2		23.8		$11,689	$1,358	$94	$1,452	$6,954	$3,283	$10,237
Midway Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	180 Midway Road	Lexington	29072	Lexington County	Lexington 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 821-0300	856	63	13.6		652 (76.2%)	38 (4.4%)	57 (6.7%)	61 (7.1%)	2 (0.2%)	4 (0.5%)	42 (4.9%)	85.3	84^th of 649 public elementary schools	87.1%		89.1	53^rd of 640 public elementary schools	91.7%	31	85.4	73.9	78.5	86.2	67.3	71.3	63.0	$13,235	$785	$335	$1,120	$10,826	$1,289	$12,114

Frequently Asked Questions about Leaphart Elementary

What schools do graduates of Leaphart Elementary attend?

Students who attend Leaphart Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : CrossRoads Intermediate
Middle : Irmo Middle
High : Irmo High

What is the racial makeup of Leaphart Elementary?

Students at Leaphart Elementary are 50% African American, 28% White, 10% Hispanic, 7% Two or more races, 3% Pacific Islander, 2% Asian.

How many students attend Leaphart Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 483 students attended Leaphart Elementary.

Is Leaphart Elementary a good school?

Leaphart Elementary ranks 347^th of 649 South Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Leaphart Elementary in?

Lexington 05

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Latest South Carolina data All new data »

2025–26 EOCEP & SC READY test scoresNewAug 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.