Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, the data changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Darlington, South Carolina - 18 schools
An equity score of 73/100 ranks Darlington 01 #10 of 74 districts in South Carolina (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $17,420 per pupil, Darlington 01 ranks #15 of 75 South Carolina districts by per-pupil spending (South Carolina districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Darlington 01 operates 18 public schools serving 9,042 students, placing it among the smaller districts in South Carolina. The school portfolio breaks down into 7 combined, 4 high, 4 elementary, 3 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Darlington County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,420 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 75 South Carolina districts by per-pupil spending. See how South Carolina compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 38.6% local, 40.1% state, and 21.4% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 73/100, ranked #10 of 74 in South Carolina against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 2 of 18 schools offering Advanced Placement (5 AP courses district-wide), a 308.4:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 30.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 50.6% African American, 33.5% White, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Hartsville High, with a diversity index of 64.8/100.
Its largest campus is Hartsville High, enrolling 1,129 students (13% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Rosenwald Elementary/Middle, at 71 students, a 16x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Darlington 01 school enrollment ranges from 71 students (lowest) to 1,129 students (highest), a spread of 1,058 students. That spread reflects typical mixed-portfolio variation between specialty programs and large neighbourhood schools. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
The reported share is above 87.5%, so economic need is widespread across the measured student population. Title I operates under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015), but its statutory allocation uses additional LEA-level counts and rules not represented by this average. This percentage is an economic-need context measure; it does not establish a Title I award, show dollars received, or describe how funds are distributed among campuses.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Darlington 01 is typically wider than the Darlington 01-aggregate figure suggests.
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
This district scores well on funding equity, with balanced funding sources and good resource allocation.
Average demographic composition across 18 schools in Darlington 01.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Darlington 01's schools, above the South Carolina average of 52.7.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
| School | Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Hartsville High | 1,129 |
| Darlington High | 965 |
| Darlington Middle | 888 |
| Hartsville Middle | 801 |
| St. John's Elementary | 596 |
| Bay Road Elementary | 563 |
| J. L. Cain Elementary | 533 |
| Lamar-Spaulding Elementary | 496 |
| North Hartsville Elementary | 486 |
| Pate Elementary | 397 |
| Southside Early Childhood Center | 360 |
| Mayo High for Math Science & Technology | 309 |
| Brockington Elementary | 303 |
| Lamar High | 268 |
| Spaulding Middle | 228 |
| Carolina Elementary | 212 |
| Thornwell School for the Arts | 188 |
| Rosenwald Elementary/Middle | 71 |
The South Carolina districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| York 02 | Similar size | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Lexington 02 | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
| Greenwood 50 | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
| Georgetown 01 | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| Cherokee 01 | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
Comparisons are relative to Darlington 01's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
Out-of-state peers matched by enrollment and by per-pupil expenditure, not the same-state lists above.
See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.
Compare vs Greenville 01 →Darlington 01 has 18 schools, including 4 high, 3 middle, 7 combined, 4 elementary. Total enrollment is 9,042 students.
Darlington 01 spends $17,420 per student. The district has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #10 in South Carolina.
Darlington 01 students are 50.6% African American, 33.5% White, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.6% Asian, averaged across 18 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Darlington 01 has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #10 out of 74 districts in South Carolina.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.