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Brookdale Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

507^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 661 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Better than 23% of South Carolina elementary schools

Summary

Brookdale Elementary is a small PK-5 school in Orangeburg, SC, serving 215 students in a predominantly low-income area where 100% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Despite the challenges that come with high poverty, this school has developed some clear strengths that make it worth a closer look for local families.

Brookdale's standout subject is math. In the most recent school year, 3rd graders scored 51.7% proficient in math—more than 12 points above the Orangeburg district average—and 5th graders hit 46.4%, beating the district by 13 points. This math advantage has been consistent for several years. The school also does notably well with its African American students, ranking in the 58th percentile statewide for that group, which is significantly better than its overall ranking. Another bright spot is attendance: Brookdale's chronic absenteeism rate is 18.7%, far better than the district's 30.9% and dramatically lower than nearby Whittaker Elementary (37.7%) and Edisto Elementary (39.6%). The school also spends more per student ($17,461) than most neighbors, and that investment seems to pay off—Mellichamp Elementary spends nearly $8,000 more per student yet ranks far lower statewide.

That said, Brookdale has areas that need attention. English Language Arts scores are inconsistent, with 5th grade ELA dropping from 52.1% proficiency two years ago to just 32.1% now—well below the district. The school's overall state ranking has also slipped from the 36th percentile to the 23rd percentile over the past few years. Interestingly, 4th graders tend to outperform their 3rd and 5th grade peers in both subjects, suggesting a particularly effective grade-level team. When compared to Felton Laboratory Charter School just down the road, Brookdale actually beats the charter in 4th grade math (34.4% vs. 24.1%). For families prioritizing strong math instruction, good attendance habits, and a school that serves its students well despite limited resources, Brookdale is a solid option within the district.

215

Students ?

13.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,461

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

394 Brookdale Drive
Orangeburg, SC 29115

(803) 534-5982

District: Orangeburg

Racial breakdown:

African American:

86.0%

Hispanic:

8.4%

White:

2.8%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 28th percentile in 2022 → 23rd in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (42% vs 58% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (23rd percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 5 percentile points since 2022

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school42%

District avg39%

South Carolina avg58%

507^th of 661

South Carolina public elementary schools ?

Bottom 23%▼ down 5 pts since 2022

From bottom 28% (2022) to bottom 23% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 12Elementary Schools in the Orangeburg

63^rd of 75Orangeburg 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	24.3	507 of 661	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	21.6	517 of 639	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	34.3	422 of 643	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.1	413 of 644	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	28.2	448 of 625	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	51.9	164 of 384	57.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	44.3	215 of 380	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	67.9	86 of 369	76.7%	★★★★☆
2023	66.7	100 of 394	74.6%	★★★★☆
2022	60.1	128 of 393	67.4%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	29.4	434 of 599	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.7	381 of 580	34.3%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	35.7	424 of 634	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.2	455 of 612	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	46.4	324 of 602	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	45.6	326 of 608	46.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.3	418 of 600	30.3%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	12.0	522 of 579	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆

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)57th percentile+34 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)33rd percentile+10 vs school

Female (2026)28th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2022)10th percentile-18 vs school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Mathematics44%-10 vs state

English Language Arts42%-23 vs state

Science38%-14 vs state

★

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Schools Near Brookdale 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 (2024)	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 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	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
Brookdale Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	394 Brookdale Drive	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 534-5982	215	16	13.2	100.0%	6 (2.8%)	185 (86.0%)	18 (8.4%)	2 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.9%)	24.3	507^th of 661 public elementary schools	23.3%		21.6	517^th of 639 public elementary schools	19.1%	10	41.9	50.0	32.1				51.7	34.4	46.4				37.6		$17,461	$1,557	$1,271	$2,827	$12,681	$1,953	$14,634
Whittaker Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	790 Whittaker Parkway	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 534-6559	325	21	15.4	100.0%	7 (2.2%)	289 (88.9%)	22 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.8%)	25.7	491^st of 661 public elementary schools	25.7%		21.1	522^nd of 639 public elementary schools	18.3%	31	50.0	51.1	51.1				40.0	37.8	44.5				33.4		$14,485	$1,758	$1,059	$2,816	$9,720	$1,948	$11,668
Felton Laboratory Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	115 Lance Street	Orangeburg	29116	Orangeburg County	School Public Charter School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(803) 536-7034	279	13	20.8	100.0%	2 (0.7%)	238 (85.3%)	9 (3.2%)	15 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (5.4%)	31.6	447^th of 661 public elementary schools	32.4%		31.3	438^th of 639 public elementary schools	31.5%	9	39.3	65.5	39.5	72.4	57.2	47.2	57.1	24.1	23.7		28.6	25.0	41.4	41.4	$14,208	$1,309	$1,231	$2,540	$8,179	$3,489	$11,668
Marshall Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1441 Marshall Street	Orangeburg	29118	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 534-7865	625	39	16.1	100.0%	13 (2.1%)	557 (89.1%)	21 (3.4%)	15 (2.4%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (2.4%)	14.4	593^rd of 661 public elementary schools	10.3%		15.2	563^rd of 639 public elementary schools	11.9%	30	41.9	49.4	37.0				38.1	28.3	26.1				37.1		$13,038	$1,084	$1,111	$2,195	$9,302	$1,541	$10,843
Sheridan Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1139 Hillsboro Road	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 534-7504	450	32	13.8	100.0%	11 (2.4%)	380 (84.4%)	35 (7.8%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.9%)	16 (3.6%)	14.1	596^th of 661 public elementary schools	9.8%		11.2	591^st of 639 public elementary schools	7.5%	5	45.3	43.8	28.3				28.0	50.0	20.8				29.1		$14,393	$1,569	$1,337	$2,906	$9,878	$1,609	$11,487
Mellichamp Elementary	Public	3-5	350 Murray Road	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 534-8044	144	14	10.0	100.0%	9 (6.3%)	123 (85.4%)	9 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.4%)	4.6	654^th of 661 public elementary schools	1.1%		5.1	631^st of 639 public elementary schools	1.3%	23	34.2	40.4	17.8				15.8	23.4	11.1				21.3		$25,614	$4,008	$1,991	$5,999	$16,849	$2,766	$19,615
Willie Jeffries School of Excellence	Public, Charter	K-7	3000 Five Chop Road	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Charter Institute at Erskine	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(803) 937-3400	274	25	11.1		15 (5.5%)	243 (88.7%)	4 (1.5%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	9 (3.3%)	2.6	659^th of 661 public elementary schools	0.3%					(n/a)	25.5	29.7	29.2	21.3	35.9		11.8	13.5	9.8	2.1	6.3		18.9	19.2
Edisto Primary	Public	PK, KG-2	3239 Cordova Road	Cordova	29039	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 536-4782	635	42	15.0	100.0%	214 (33.7%)	328 (51.7%)	52 (8.2%)	5 (0.8%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (5.2%)								(n/a)															$14,114	$1,221	$1,184	$2,405	$10,004	$1,705	$11,709
Edisto Elementary	Public	3-5	136 Woodolive Lane	Orangeburg	29515	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	No	(803) 531-7646	419	27	15.2	100.0%	162 (38.7%)	196 (46.8%)	24 (5.7%)	6 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (7.4%)	15.7	582^nd of 661 public elementary schools	12.0%		17.8	541^st of 639 public elementary schools	15.3%	41	41.6	45.3	39.1				39.6	35.7	33.4				30.2		$14,392	$1,769	$1,435	$3,204	$9,579	$1,610	$11,189
Bethune-Bowman Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4857 Charleston Highway	Rowesville	29133	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	Yes	(803) 533-6371	259	19	14.0	100.0%	2 (0.8%)	220 (84.9%)	31 (12.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.3%)	12.3	610^th of 661 public elementary schools	7.7%		9.8	601^st of 639 public elementary schools	5.9%	9	45.9	41.2	32.4				37.8	14.7	29.4				35.3		$15,024	$1,262	$1,102	$2,363	$10,874	$1,787	$12,661

Frequently Asked Questions about Brookdale Elementary

Is Brookdale Elementary a good school?

Brookdale Elementary ranks in the bottom 23.3% of South Carolina elementary schools.

How many students attend Brookdale Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 215 students attended Brookdale Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Brookdale Elementary attend?

Students who attend Brookdale Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Orangeburg Wilkinson High

What district is Brookdale Elementary in?

Orangeburg

What is the racial makeup of Brookdale Elementary?

Students at Brookdale Elementary are 86% African American, 8% Hispanic, 3% White, 2% Two or more races.

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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.