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J. P. Thomas Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

577^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 649 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 11% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

J. P. Thomas Elementary is a PK-5 public school in Columbia, SC, serving 346 students in the Richland 01 school district, where 100% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch.

This school has faced significant academic challenges, ranking in the bottom 11% of South Carolina elementary schools with a 1-star rating. However, there are important nuances for parents to understand. The school shows a notable strength in serving its African American students, who rank in the 40th percentile statewide—a full 29 points higher than the school's overall ranking. This suggests that certain instructional approaches may be working well for this group and could potentially be expanded. The school also maintains a favorable student-teacher ratio of 12.3:1 and spends a substantial $24,815 per student, which is actually higher than nearby schools that outperform it, such as Bradley Elementary ($22,878) and Forest Heights Elementary ($20,567). This suggests the challenges aren't about resources, but rather how they're deployed.

One of the most concerning trends is the sharp decline in math proficiency as students progress. While 3rd graders show 44.3% proficiency, that drops to 25.6% by 4th grade and just 20.4% by 5th grade—a pattern consistent across multiple years. Science is also a significant weakness, with only 28.2% of 4th graders proficient compared to 40.7% district-wide. Chronic absenteeism has risen sharply to 29.5%, notably higher than the state average of 22.3% and much higher than nearby Hyatt Park Elementary (16.9%). When comparing to nearby schools, Bradley Elementary (35th percentile) and Carver-Lyon Elementary (26th percentile) both outperform J. P. Thomas significantly, particularly in upper-grade math and ELA. The school also shows considerable year-to-year volatility in test scores, suggesting a need for more consistent, vertically-aligned instruction across grade levels.

346

Students ?

12.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,815

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

6001 Weston Avenue
Columbia, SC 29203

(803) 735-3430

District: Richland 01

Students who attend J. P. Thomas Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Alcorn Middle
High:	Eau Claire High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

86.1%

Two or more races:

5.8%

White:

4.0%

See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

Compare J. P. Thomas Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 11th percentile in 2016 → 11th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (38% vs 58% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (11th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (30% vs 22% South Carolina)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school38%

District avg50%

South Carolina avg58%

577^th of 649

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 11%▬ steady since 2016

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

23^rd of 27Elementary Schools in the Richland 01

55^th of 75Richland 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	15.4	577 of 649	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	17.3	545 of 640	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.9	515 of 638	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	13.8	569 of 644	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.1	559 of 625	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	10.3	575 of 622	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.1	556 of 643	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.0	512 of 624	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	12.5	592 of 639	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	16.8	552 of 619	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	14.2	596 of 638	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	13.4	591 of 630	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	9.0	573 of 599	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	5.7	577 of 594	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	14.3	552 of 597	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	17.8	533 of 589	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	11.6	546 of 580	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	9.6	555 of 577	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	4.3	555 of 566	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	4.4	552 of 559	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	6.0	546 of 557	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	8.5	531 of 550	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2003	10.4	512 of 542	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	40.2	228 of 379	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	42.5	227 of 381	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.0	223 of 369	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	37.8	252 of 394	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.4	270 of 393	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.4	262 of 350	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	38.3	280 of 421	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.3	205 of 412	50.2%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	24.0	475 of 589	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.3	466 of 581	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.2	415 of 565	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.7	492 of 580	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.8	508 of 573	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.4	507 of 554	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	18.8	497 of 588	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.7	474 of 570	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	23.6	506 of 624	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	27.2	471 of 613	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.6	458 of 599	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.3	523 of 608	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.7	532 of 600	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.8	518 of 580	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.9	505 of 600	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.7	442 of 588	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	13.1	524 of 586	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	6.5	553 of 568	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.9	544 of 582	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.0	548 of 579	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.5	537 of 561	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.5	518 of 590	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.2	495 of 571	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆

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)40th percentile+29 vs school

Female (2026)19th percentile+8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)19th percentile+8 vs school

Male (2025)11th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts47%-18 vs state

Mathematics31%-22 vs state

Science28%-23 vs state

★

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Schools Near J. P. Thomas 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
J. P. Thomas Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	6001 Weston Avenue	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 735-3430	346	28	12.3		14 (4.0%)	298 (86.1%)	11 (3.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	20 (5.8%)	15.4	577^th of 649 public elementary schools	11.1%		17.3	545^th of 640 public elementary schools	14.8%	32	48.1	48.7	43.1	44.3	25.6	20.4	28.2	$24,815	$3,835	$1,532	$5,366	$16,819	$2,629	$19,448
Arden Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1300 Ashley Street	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 735-3400	216	19	11.3		2 (0.9%)	126 (58.3%)	73 (33.8%)	4 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (5.1%)	17.1	555^th of 649 public elementary schools	14.5%		21.3	521^st of 640 public elementary schools	18.6%	34	37.8	47.3	52.9	40.5	27.7	32.3	30.6	$24,750	$2,750	$1,452	$4,202	$17,462	$3,087	$20,548
Burton Pack Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	111 Garden Drive	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 691-5550	255	26	9.8		1 (0.4%)	227 (89.0%)	13 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (5.5%)	14.8	581^st of 649 public elementary schools	10.5%		6.1	628^th of 640 public elementary schools	1.9%	47	36.6	54.2	42.8	20.0	41.2	23.5	29.4	$21,148	$2,039	$1,747	$3,786	$14,686	$2,677	$17,363
A. J. Lewis Greenview Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	726 Easter Street	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 735-3417	358	24	15.2		1 (0.3%)	325 (90.8%)	25 (7.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.0%)	17.3	553^rd of 649 public elementary schools	14.8%		16.6	553^rd of 640 public elementary schools	13.6%		40.4	47.7	52.2	23.9	25.6	41.3	28.8	$22,558	$2,904	$1,712	$4,616	$14,919	$3,024	$17,943
Hyatt Park Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4200 Main Street	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 735-3421	317	27	11.7		9 (2.8%)	280 (88.3%)	12 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (5.0%)	15.7	570^th of 649 public elementary schools	12.2%		9.3	609^th of 640 public elementary schools	4.8%	39	56.0	46.2	36.0	52.0	23.0	16.0	15.4	$29,885	$5,348	$1,789	$7,137	$19,560	$3,189	$22,749
Carolina School for Inquiry	Public, Charter	PK, KG-6	7405-A Fairfield Road	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	Yes	No	No	Yes	(803) 691-1250	114	12	9.5		4 (3.5%)	104 (91.2%)	2 (1.8%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.6%)								(n/a)								$24,883	$1,226	$1,465	$2,691	$15,290	$6,903	$22,192
Watkins-Nance Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2525 Barhamville Road	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 733-4321	499	30	16.6		8 (1.6%)	432 (86.6%)	20 (4.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (7.4%)	10.1	617^th of 649 public elementary schools	4.9%		9.3	608^th of 640 public elementary schools	5.0%	9	39.3	45.3	43.9	29.2	27.0	22.7	25.4	$19,750	$3,013	$1,958	$4,972	$12,406	$2,372	$14,778
Bradley Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	3032 Pinebelt Road	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 738-7200	392	33	11.8		20 (5.1%)	274 (69.9%)	66 (16.8%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.3%)	22 (5.6%)	34.8	424^th of 649 public elementary schools	34.7%		39.8	381^st of 640 public elementary schools	40.5%	43	44.8	62.3	53.7	41.4	54.7	35.2	47.2	$22,878	$3,074	$1,695	$4,769	$15,499	$2,611	$18,110
Forest Heights Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2500 Blue Ridge Terrace	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 691-3780	435	36	12.0		18 (4.1%)	314 (72.2%)	77 (17.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.0%)	15.4	576^th of 649 public elementary schools	11.2%		20.5	529^th of 640 public elementary schools	17.3%	47	53.6	50.0	44.9	37.7	24.6	19.0	27.9	$20,567	$2,644	$1,341	$3,985	$14,101	$2,481	$16,582
Carver-Lyon Elementary	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	2100 Waverly Street	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(803) 343-2900	417	47	8.8		32 (7.7%)	302 (72.4%)	62 (14.9%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.3%)	25.8	483^rd of 649 public elementary schools	25.6%		28.4	462^nd of 640 public elementary schools	27.8%	21	51.7	68.4	44.6	41.4	33.4	23.0	42.1	$29,568	$2,186	$1,377	$3,563	$22,536	$3,469	$26,005

Frequently Asked Questions about J. P. Thomas Elementary

Is J. P. Thomas Elementary a good school?

J. P. Thomas Elementary ranks in the bottom 11.1% of South Carolina elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of J. P. Thomas Elementary attend?

Students who attend J. P. Thomas Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Alcorn Middle
High : Eau Claire High

How many students attend J. P. Thomas Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 346 students attended J. P. Thomas Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of J. P. Thomas Elementary?

Students at J. P. Thomas Elementary are 86% African American, 6% Two or more races, 4% White, 3% Hispanic.

What district is J. P. Thomas Elementary in?

Richland 01

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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.