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William J. Clark Middle

Public Grades 6-8

325^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 341 South Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 5% of South Carolina middle schools

Summary

William J. Clark Middle serves 587 students in grades 6-8 in Orangeburg, SC, and is part of the Orangeburg school district, where 100% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.

This school has seen a steady decline in its state ranking over the past five years, dropping from the 24th percentile in 2020-2021 to just the 4th percentile in 2025-2026, placing it at 321st out of 335 middle schools statewide. The most significant concern is mathematics proficiency, where only 8.5% of 6th graders, 14.2% of 7th graders, and 16.6% of 8th graders scored proficient in 2025-2026—roughly 25-32 percentage points below state averages. This is particularly stark when compared to nearby Carver Edisto Middle, where 39.2% of 6th graders were proficient in math, and Robert E. Howard Middle, just 1.55 miles away, which outperforms Clark in most subjects. Chronic absenteeism is also a major issue, with 34.7% of students missing significant school time compared to the state average of 22.3%.

Despite these challenges, there are bright spots worth noting. Students taking Algebra 1 achieve exceptional results, with 92.86% scoring proficient in 2023-2024 compared to the state's 72.5%, suggesting the school effectively supports its advanced learners. Additionally, outcomes for disabled students have improved dramatically, rising from the 2nd percentile to the 20th percentile over two years. The school also shows grade-level progress in English Language Arts, with proficiency improving from 27.9% in 6th grade to 41% in 8th grade. With per-student spending at $15,460 and an improved student-teacher ratio of 13:1, the school has resources to work with—the challenge is scaling its successes to benefit all students.

587

Students ?

13.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,527

Per pupil spending ?

78.1%

Directly certified for free meals (2023-24) ?

All students receive free meals (Community Eligibility, 2023-24)

≥ 96%

Students (all grades) with required immunizations (2025-26)

919 Bennett Avenue
Orangeburg, SC 29115

(803) 531-2200

District: Orangeburg

Students who attend William J. Clark Middle usually attend:

High:

Orangeburg Wilkinson High

Feeder schools for William J. Clark Middle:

Elementary:	Marshall Elementary
	Sheridan Elementary

Racial breakdown:

African American:

87.6%

Hispanic:

4.9%

White:

3.2%

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Compare William J. Clark Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2021 → 5th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the South Carolina average (24% vs 51% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (5th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (38% vs 21% South Carolina)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school24%

District avg30%

South Carolina avg51%

325^th of 341

South Carolina public middle schools ?

Bottom 5%▼ down 20 pts since 2021

From bottom 24% (2021) to bottom 5% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 3Middle 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	9.0	325 of 341	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	10.5	304 of 321	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.2	291 of 322	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.0	295 of 325	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.2	262 of 310	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.1	235 of 311	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	22.2	221 of 258	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.8	209 of 251	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.5	187 of 246	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.6	195 of 253	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	38.1	149 of 249	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	43.1	124 of 235	47.2%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	29.0	152 of 192	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	20.9	162 of 184	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	11.0	174 of 177	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.3	161 of 187	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.1	167 of 183	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	8.7	298 of 310	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	11.4	273 of 295	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	246 of 293	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.2	258 of 299	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.5	239 of 290	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	16.7	146 of 159	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	9.4	314 of 325	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	10.4	300 of 308	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.3	288 of 304	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.2	298 of 313	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.5	271 of 300	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	33.7	184 of 288	36.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	8.7	295 of 310	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.6	284 of 298	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.2	282 of 292	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.3	288 of 303	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.9	266 of 292	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Disabled (2026)21st percentile+16 vs school

African American (2026)14th percentile+10 vs school

Hispanic (2026)8th percentile+3 vs school

Male (2026)5th percentile~ school

Female (2026)4th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)3rd percentile~ school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts35%-23 vs state

Science23%-29 vs state

Mathematics13%-29 vs state

★

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Schools Near William J. Clark Middle

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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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SC READY English Language Arts (2026)			SC READY Mathematics (2026)			SC READY Science (2026)	Vaccination (2025-26)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2026)
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	Directly certified (2023-24)	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 6th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 7th Grade	SC READY English Language Arts 8th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 6th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 7th Grade	SC READY Mathematics 8th Grade	SC READY Science 6th Grade	Vaccination: Students (all grades) with required immunizations	Vaccination: Exemption rate	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
William J. Clark Middle	Public	6-8	919 Bennett Avenue	Orangeburg	29115	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	No	(803) 531-2200	587	45	13.0	78.1%	19 (3.2%)	514 (87.6%)	29 (4.9%)	10 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	13 (2.2%)	9	325^th of 341 public middle schools	4.7%		10.5	304^th of 321 public middle schools	5.3%	21	27.9	37.3	41.0	8.5	14.2	16.6	22.7	≥ 96%		$15,527	$1,475	$1,335	$2,810	$10,753	$1,964	$12,717
Carver Edisto Middle	Public	6-8	2018 Carver School Road	Cope	29038	Orangeburg County	Orangeburg	No	No	No	No	(803) 534-3554	439	34	12.7	81.9%	148 (33.7%)	230 (52.4%)	36 (8.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.2%)	22.3	267^th of 341 public middle schools	21.7%		11.5	299^th of 321 public middle schools	6.9%	32	42.3	43.4	40.3	39.2	20.2	21.7	38.1	≥ 96%		$16,281	$1,849	$1,254	$3,104	$10,943	$2,234	$13,177
Bamberg-Ehrhardt Middle	Public	7-8	897 North Street	Bamberg	29003	Bamberg County	Bamberg 03	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(803) 245-3058	188	18	10.4	70.1%	89 (47.3%)	88 (46.8%)	4 (2.1%)	3 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.1%)	47.1	169^th of 341 public middle schools	50.4%		29.7	231^st of 321 public middle schools	28.0%	62		56.0	48.8		42.9	43.2		≥ 96%		$20,620	$1,195	$1,088	$2,283	$15,262	$3,074	$18,337
Denmark-Olar Middle	Public	6-8	1437 Church St	Denmark	29042	Bamberg County	Bamberg 03	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(803) 793-3383	144	9	16.0	87.2%	2 (1.4%)	132 (91.7%)	4 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.2%)	9.9	321^st of 341 public middle schools	5.9%		5.7	320^th of 321 public middle schools	0.3%	1	42.9	24.4	33.3	21.5	13.3	10.3	16.7	≥ 96%		$17,423	$1,022	$954	$1,975	$11,828	$3,620	$15,448

Frequently Asked Questions about William J. Clark Middle

Is William J. Clark Middle a good school?

William J. Clark Middle ranks in the bottom 4.7% of South Carolina middle schools.

What high school do graduates of William J. Clark Middle attend?

Students who attend William J. Clark Middle usually go on to attend Orangeburg Wilkinson High

What district is William J. Clark Middle in?

Orangeburg

What is the racial makeup of William J. Clark Middle?

Students at William J. Clark Middle are 88% African American, 5% Hispanic, 3% White, 2% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

How many students attend William J. Clark Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 587 students attended William J. Clark Middle.

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Latest South Carolina data All new data »

2025–26 graduation rates (updated)NewNov 2, 2026

2024–25 through 2025–26 immunization ratesNewOct 20, 2026

2025–26 school spending dataOct 12, 2026

2025–26 attendance data & dropout ratesOct 12, 2026

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.