Schools in Zip Code 29831

Zip code 29831 in Jackson, South Carolina, is served by a single school, Jackson STEM Middle, which educates students in grades 6 through 8 within the Aiken 01 school district.

For parents considering this area, the most important takeaway is that Jackson STEM Middle is a small school (302 students) with a specialized STEM focus, but its academic results are mixed and often lag behind state averages. The school’s biggest challenge is mathematics, where proficiency rates are roughly half the state average—for example, only 19% of 6th graders and 24.4% of 7th graders are proficient in math, compared to 40.9% and 41.8% statewide. This is particularly concerning for a STEM-designated school. English Language Arts performance is more varied, with 7th graders achieving 54.7% proficiency (close to the state’s 59.5%), but 6th graders at just 40% (well below the state’s 56.3%). Science scores are the strongest area, with 6th graders at 47.5% proficiency, nearly matching the state’s 51.9%. The school also has a high chronic absenteeism rate of 28.2%, which is notably above both the district (25.1%) and state (22.3%) figures and likely contributes to academic struggles.

On a positive note, the school showed improvement in math across all grade levels from the previous year, with gains ranging from 1.8 to 7.7 percentage points, and science improved by 7.7 points. However, the school’s state ranking has declined steadily over three years, from the 38th percentile in 2023-24 to the 27th percentile in 2025-26. Despite spending a relatively high $13,573 per student, results remain below district and state benchmarks in most subjects. The school’s small size means year-to-year swings can be dramatic, so parents should look at multi-year trends rather than a single year’s data. Overall, while there are signs of momentum in math and science, the school faces significant work to close achievement gaps, especially in foundational math skills.