Summary:
Zip code 29003 in Bamberg, South Carolina, is served by a single elementary school, Richard Carroll Elementary, which enrolls 689 students across grades PK through 6 within the Bamberg 03 school district.
For parents considering this school, the most notable strength is in English Language Arts, particularly in 3rd grade where 70.2% of students meet proficiency standards—exceeding the state average by 6.1 points. The school also showed remarkable year-over-year gains in 5th grade, with ELA proficiency jumping 14.7 points and math improving 12.1 points. However, these bright spots are offset by significant challenges. Mathematics is the school's most critical weakness, with proficiency rates trailing state averages by 9.8 to 24.3 points across all grade levels. The 4th grade is particularly concerning, showing steep declines in both math (-10.6 points) and science (-9.6 points) from the previous year. Science performance is split, with 6th grade nearly matching the state average (48.8% vs. 51.9%) while 4th grade lags nearly 24 points behind.
The school maintains a favorable 14:1 student-teacher ratio and spends $16,591 per student, yet these resources haven't translated into consistently strong results. Chronic absenteeism affects 21.9% of students—roughly 1 in 4—which likely compounds the academic challenges, especially in sequential subjects like math. The school's state ranking has slipped from the 40th to 37th percentile over the past year, and it has earned 2 stars in each of the last three years. While 3rd grade ELA stands out as a genuine success story and 5th grade showed impressive improvement, the overall picture is mixed. Parents should be aware that the school performs best in early elementary reading but struggles significantly in mathematics and 4th grade science, making targeted support in those areas particularly important for student success.
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