Summary:
Zip code 29556 in Kingstree, SC, is served by a single public high school, Kingstree High, which enrolls 681 students in grades 9 through 12 as part of the Williamsburg 01 school district.
For parents considering this area, the most important takeaway is that Kingstree High shows a highly uneven academic profile. In the 2024-2025 school year, the school actually beat the state average in Algebra 1 (82.5% proficient vs. 74% statewide) and English 2 (87.5% vs. 86.4%), demonstrating real strengths in those subjects. However, the same year saw U.S. History proficiency at just 50.7%, well below the state's 61.5%. More concerning is the dramatic projected decline for 2025-2026, where proficiency rates are expected to fall sharply across all subjects—English 1 drops from 61% to 38.5%, and U.S. History falls to 38.4%. This aligns with the school's state ranking dropping from 106th (55th percentile) in 2023-2024 to a projected 184th (25th percentile) for 2025-2026.
The biggest red flag is chronic absenteeism. At 36.9%, it is far above the state average of 22.3%, meaning more than one in three students misses significant school time. This is especially striking given that the school spends a substantial $18,605 per student and maintains a favorable 13.4:1 student-teacher ratio—resources that cannot help students who are not in class. The graduation rate of 82.6% trails the state's 86.7%, and the dropout rate of 3.0% is higher than the state's 2.1%. These challenges appear systemic, as the Williamsburg 01 district also struggles with high absenteeism (35.6%) and a low 19th percentile ranking. In short, while Kingstree High has proven it can achieve strong results in specific subjects, the combination of rising absenteeism and projected test score declines suggests families should closely monitor the school's trajectory.
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