Enrollment
606
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Effingham, SC
Dewey-Carter Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Dewey-Carter Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 450213001331
👥 S:T ratio 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 41
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dewey-Carter Elementary earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the South Carolina median.
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.4:1
- students per teacher
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 606
- students enrolled
Dewey-Carter Elementary has class sizes near the South Carolina median. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Florence 01 · South Carolina
NCES ID 450213001331 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
42.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.4:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dewey-Carter Elementary compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dewey-Carter Elementary
Dewey-Carter Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Effingham, South Carolina, enrolling 606 students.
At 14.4:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the South Carolina median, within a few percentage points of the 14.3:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 100.0% lands close to the South Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 606 students, its enrollment sits close to the South Carolina median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,214 scored South Carolina schools.
Against 349 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #220.
Its student body is led by African American (43%) and White (41%) (diversity index 64/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 606 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 20.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Florence 01 also operates West Florence High (1,827 students) and South Florence High (1,580 students) alongside Dewey-Carter Elementary.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Dewey-Carter Elementary compares
Dewey-Carter Elementary on the metrics families compare, against South Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.4:1 | ▲ 1% | 14.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 606 | top 43% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.4:1
Leaner classes than 53% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
606
Bigger than 73% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 35% above the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.4:1
students per teacher
- 1% above state mean
Top 56% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
23.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,158
per pupil, district-wide
- below South Carolina avg of $14,558
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 606 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 52 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
African American 43.2%
White 40.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.9%
Two or More 6.3%
Largest group: African American at 43.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 63.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 63.5, Dewey-Carter Elementary is more mixed than the South Carolina school average of 52.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Florence 01, which includes Dewey-Carter Elementary.
$13,158
Per student
-10%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 33.4%
State 46.0%
Federal 20.6%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Dewey-Carter Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Florence High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| South Florence High | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Wilson High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Southside Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| John W. Moore Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dewey-Carter Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,827
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 1,580
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 1,373
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 1,138
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,056
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of South Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~606 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dewey-Carter Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Dewey-Carter Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Florence 01's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Dewey-Carter Elementary
How many students attend Dewey-Carter Elementary?
Dewey-Carter Elementary has 606 students enrolled. It is a public school in Effingham, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dewey-Carter Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Dewey-Carter Elementary is 14.4:1, which is 1% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Dewey-Carter Elementary?
100.0% of students at Dewey-Carter Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dewey-Carter Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Dewey-Carter Elementary is African American at 43.2% of enrollment, in Effingham, SC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 63.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dewey-Carter Elementary?
Dewey-Carter Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Dewey-Carter Elementary a good school?
Dewey-Carter Elementary earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the South Carolina median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Florence 01?
Besides Dewey-Carter Elementary, Florence 01 also operates West Florence High (1,827 students), South Florence High (1,580 students), and Wilson High (1,373 students). See the Florence 01 district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.