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Dent Middle

Q: Is Dent Middle a good school?

Dent Middle ranks 186 th of 320 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public, Magnet Grades 6-8

186^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 320 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 42% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

Dent Middle is a public magnet middle school in Columbia, South Carolina, serving 1,035 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the Richland 02 school district, which is ranked 37 out of 75 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Dent Middle consistently outperforms the Richland 02 district and the state of South Carolina in standardized test scores, particularly in mathematics. However, the school struggles with lower rankings and performance for its Hispanic, English Language Learner, Low Socio-Economic Status, and Disabled student subgroups. Additionally, Dent Middle has consistently high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 20.1% to 24.7% over the past few years, which is higher than the state average. Despite its strong performance in certain areas, the school's state ranking has declined over the past several years, dropping from a high of 90 out of 301 South Carolina middle schools in 2014-2015 to a ranking of 186 out of 320 schools in the most recent 2024-2025 school year.

When compared to nearby schools, Dent Middle's performance is mixed. While it outperforms many of the lower-performing schools in the Richland 02 and Richland 01 districts, it lags behind high-performing schools like Blythewood Middle and Crayton Middle in terms of overall state rankings and test scores. The school's high per-student spending of $14,832 in the 2023-2024 school year, which is significantly higher than the state average, suggests that additional resources may not be translating into consistently strong academic performance across all student subgroups.

1,059

Students ?

12.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,232

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2721 Decker Boulevard
Columbia, SC 29206

(803) 699-2750

District: Richland 02

Students who attend Dent Middle usually attend:

High:

Richland Northeast High

Feeder schools for Dent Middle:

Elementary:	Forest Lake Elementary
	Joseph Keels Elementary
	L. W. Conder Elementary

Racial breakdown:

African American:

53.4%

Hispanic:

17.6%

White:

17.5%

See top rated South Carolina middle schools

Compare Dent Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 70th percentile in 2015 → 42nd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (42% vs 50% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 28 percentile points since 2015

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school42%

District avg44%

South Carolina avg50%

186^th of 320

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 42%▼ down 28 pts since 2015

From top 30% (2015) to bottom 42% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 4Middle Schools in the Richland 02

37^th of 75Richland 02 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	40.7	186 of 320	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.8	168 of 325	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	51.0	142 of 325	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	51.0	137 of 310	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	45.9	156 of 311	49.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	45.9	162 of 315	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	45.0	158 of 303	47.9%	★★☆☆☆
2017	52.2	140 of 317	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2016	51.3	146 of 303	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	62.3	90 of 301	70.1%	★★★★☆
2014	39.9	185 of 291	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2013	42.3	175 of 276	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2012	45.4	165 of 271	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	54.4	140 of 269	48.0%	★★☆☆☆
2010	62.4	107 of 261	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2009	60.0	109 of 249	56.2%	★★★☆☆
2008	51.7	135 of 244	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2007	60.1	112 of 236	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2006	61.9	95 of 231	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2005	56.7	110 of 230	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2004	63.6	97 of 230	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2003	63.4	85 of 225	62.2%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	45.8	135 of 252	46.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.8	135 of 248	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	54.9	95 of 253	62.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	62.4	60 of 249	75.9%	★★★★☆
2021	63.4	55 of 235	76.6%	★★★★☆
2019	52.2	102 of 252	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	50.1	112 of 237	52.7%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2024	47.6	5 of 8	37.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	49.9	5 of 7	28.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	31.6	6 of 6	0.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	86.8	1 of 7	85.7%	★★★★★
2018	80.1	1 of 5	80.0%	★★★★★

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	17.4	174 of 184	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	21.3	161 of 177	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	32.5	128 of 187	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.1	87 of 183	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	45.6	73 of 164	55.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	31.3	146 of 195	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.9	130 of 194	33.0%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	30.7	70 of 108	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.3	63 of 105	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	44.4	50 of 95	47.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	31.4	70 of 97	27.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	21.1	76 of 87	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	68.9	30 of 117	74.4%	★★★★☆
2018	65.8	25 of 93	73.1%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	47.6	149 of 295	49.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	40.7	164 of 294	44.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.8	171 of 299	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.8	145 of 290	50.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	40.8	162 of 279	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	48.3	155 of 296	47.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	45.5	157 of 281	44.1%	★★☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	67.5	59 of 173	65.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	69.0	56 of 183	69.4%	★★★★☆
2023	75.1	34 of 185	81.6%	★★★★☆
2022	71.4	46 of 182	74.7%	★★★★☆
2021	83.7	10 of 179	94.4%	★★★★★

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	22.3	131 of 156	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.6	114 of 144	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	39.5	94 of 141	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.7	87 of 129	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.0	84 of 111	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	44.2	84 of 139	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.8	76 of 123	38.2%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	24.9	245 of 307	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.3	248 of 307	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.5	219 of 313	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.8	195 of 300	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.3	201 of 288	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	28.6	220 of 289	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.9	232 of 280	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	33.3	196 of 296	33.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	45.2	151 of 294	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	56.7	112 of 303	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	54.9	115 of 292	60.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	49.4	128 of 279	54.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	43.7	164 of 296	44.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.3	154 of 284	45.8%	★★☆☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	26.7	12 of 13	7.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	35.8	10 of 13	23.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.6	8 of 12	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	41.8	5 of 11	54.5%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	85.9	29 of 257	88.7%	★★★★☆
2024	94.7	11 of 255	95.7%	★★★★★
2023	87.7	24 of 260	90.8%	★★★★★
2022	88.8	24 of 249	90.4%	★★★★★
2021	88.0	25 of 244	89.8%	★★★★★
2019	90.7	20 of 258	92.2%	★★★★★
2018	89.6	21 of 250	91.6%	★★★★★

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)

White (2025)89th percentile+47 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2025)66th percentile+24 vs school

Female (2025)49th percentile+8 vs school

African American (2025)46th percentile+5 vs school

Asian (2024)38th percentile-11 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)35th percentile-7 vs school

Male (2025)34th percentile-8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)20th percentile-22 vs school

Hispanic (2025)16th percentile-26 vs school

Military Connected (2025)8th percentile-34 vs school

Disabled (2025)5th percentile-36 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2100%+26 vs state

Science46%~ state avg

English Language Arts46%-10 vs state

Mathematics32%-3 vs state

2.0

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What people are saying

by a citizen
Sunday, October 7, 2012

Dent Middle School is on the list of SPLC to participate in "Mix it up".
This is a program teaching tolerance. You can look it up yourself at http://www.tolerance.org/mix-it-up/map
Do you, as a parent, know what kind of tolerance they are teaching your child? Close Quote

Schools Near Dent Middle

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)		EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (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 English Language Arts 6th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 7th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 8th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 3rd Grade	SC READY Mathematics 4th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 5th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 4th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 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
Dent Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	2721 Decker Boulevard	Columbia	29206	Richland County	Richland 02	No	Yes	No	No	(803) 699-2750	1,059	83	12.7		185 (17.5%)	566 (53.4%)	186 (17.6%)	67 (6.3%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (4.4%)	40.7	186^th of 320 public middle schools	41.9%		43.8	168^th of 325 public middle schools	48.3%	18				48.2	47.5	42.5				36.2	31.2	28.6		46.2	100.0	$15,232	$1,039	$661	$1,699	$11,035	$2,497	$13,532
W. G. Sanders Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	3455 Pine Belt Road	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	Yes	No	No	(803) 735-7575	503	54	9.3		59 (11.7%)	376 (74.8%)	46 (9.1%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (3.8%)	31.9	221^st of 320 public middle schools	30.9%		40	185^th of 325 public middle schools	43.1%	36				44.3	37.5	56.2				23.6	18.2	29.4		37.2	100.0	$20,208	$1,375	$1,201	$2,576	$14,996	$2,637	$17,633
Palmetto Achievement Center for Excellence Academy	Public, Charter	2-8	6015 N Main Street	Columbia	29203	Richland County	School Public Charter School District	Yes	No	No	No	(803) 900-0664	216	23	9.3		106 (49.1%)	89 (41.2%)	9 (4.2%)	2 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (4.6%)	8.5	309^th of 320 public middle schools	3.4%		8.8	316^th of 325 public middle schools	2.8%	7	14.8	20.5	30.3	28.5	35.5	42.3	0.0	0.0	3.0	3.6	0.0	7.7	11.4	17.8		$16,348	$1,802	$163	$1,965	$11,174	$3,208	$14,383
Crayton Middle	Public	6-8	5000 Clemson Avenue	Columbia	29206	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 738-7224	952	68	14.0		469 (49.3%)	330 (34.7%)	70 (7.4%)	17 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	64 (6.7%)	82.3	51^st of 320 public middle schools	84.1%		84.6	46^th of 325 public middle schools	85.8%	5				66.7	70.4	65.7				55.0	53.7	47.1		62.3	98.8	$17,291	$1,415	$1,114	$2,529	$12,672	$2,090	$14,761
W. A. Perry Middle	Public	6-8	2600 Barhamville Road	Columbia	29204	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 256-6347	320	32	10.0		2 (0.6%)	289 (90.3%)	11 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.6%)	13.4	288^th of 320 public middle schools	10.0%		16.8	276^th of 325 public middle schools	15.1%	12				34.8	46.8	34.7				10.2	12.6	9.1		22.0	90.5	$30,818	$3,082	$2,054	$5,136	$19,110	$6,573	$25,683
Alcorn Middle	Public	6-8	5125 Fairfield Road	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 735-3439	381	31	12.4		11 (2.9%)	295 (77.4%)	55 (14.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.0%)	6.4	316^th of 320 public middle schools	1.3%		7.7	319^th of 325 public middle schools	1.8%	3				25.8	29.1	22.8				9.2	10.3	7.3		15.5		$22,494	$2,572	$1,551	$4,123	$15,467	$2,904	$18,371
Hand Middle	Public	6-8	2600 Wheat Street	Columbia	29205	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	No	(803) 343-2947	755	61	12.3		232 (30.7%)	388 (51.4%)	82 (10.9%)	7 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	44 (5.8%)	49.1	150^th of 320 public middle schools	53.1%		52.2	141^st of 325 public middle schools	56.6%	9				56.8	56.5	55.8				31.2	30.5	35.7		38.0	98.3	$18,872	$1,401	$1,133	$2,534	$13,897	$2,441	$16,338
Heyward Gibbes Middle	Public	6-8	500 Summerlea Drive	Columbia	29203	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 343-2942	252	26	9.8		4 (1.6%)	227 (90.1%)	13 (5.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.2%)	11.9	295^th of 320 public middle schools	7.8%		11.4	301^st of 325 public middle schools	7.4%	6				38.4	40.3	33.3				11.5	10.5	3.9		27.0		$28,273	$2,597	$1,973	$4,569	$19,307	$4,397	$23,704
Longleaf Middle	Public, Magnet	6-8	1160 Longreen Parkway	Columbia	29229	Richland County	Richland 02	No	Yes	No	No	(803) 691-4870	796	56	14.2		64 (8.0%)	609 (76.5%)	73 (9.2%)	9 (1.1%)	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (4.6%)	32.9	214^th of 320 public middle schools	33.1%		31.6	220^th of 325 public middle schools	32.3%	6				46.2	48.0	51.4				24.9	17.3	26.0		39.9	100.0	$14,283	$905	$669	$1,575	$10,730	$1,978	$12,709
St. Andrews Middle	Public	6-8	1231 Bluefield Road	Columbia	29210	Richland County	Richland 01	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 731-8910	627	58	10.8		17 (2.7%)	523 (83.4%)	46 (7.3%)	11 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (4.6%)	9.7	305^th of 320 public middle schools	4.7%		10.7	306^th of 325 public middle schools	5.8%	1				34.9	32.1	32.2				15.5	5.1	10.4		21.4		$18,051	$2,156	$1,651	$3,808	$11,942	$2,301	$14,244

Frequently Asked Questions about Dent Middle

How many students attend Dent Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,059 students attended Dent Middle.

What is the racial makeup of Dent Middle?

Students at Dent Middle are 53% African American, 18% Hispanic, 17% White, 6% Asian, 4% Two or more races.

What high school do graduates of Dent Middle attend?

Students who attend Dent Middle usually go on to attend Richland Northeast High

What district is Dent Middle in?

Richland 02

Is Dent Middle a good school?

Dent Middle ranks 186^th of 320 South Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Rate Dent Middle!

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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.