Elementary school (grades K-5) · Gaston, SC

Frances F. Mack Intermediate

Federal NCES profile for Frances F. Mack Intermediate, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 29/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 450279000749
0/100100/10029/100
👥 S:T ratio
44
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Frances F. Mack Intermediate earns 29/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the South Carolina median.

29
Resource Index · Lower
13.9:1
students per teacher
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
515
students enrolled

Frances F. Mack Intermediate has class sizes near the South Carolina median. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.

School address

Enrollment

515

South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

37.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

13.9:1

vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg

-3% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

100.0%

vs 74.0% South Carolina avg

+35% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Frances F. Mack Intermediate compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Frances F. Mack Intermediate

Frances F. Mack Intermediate is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Gaston, South Carolina, enrolling 515 students.

At 13.9:1, 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 515 students, its enrollment sits close to the South Carolina median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index trails 96% of the 1,214 South Carolina schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.

Among 386 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need South Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #357, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by White (48%) and Hispanic or Latino (29%) (diversity index 66/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 515 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 61.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 20.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Discipline events run high: 140 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 515 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.

The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.

Lexington 04 also operates Swansea High (695 students) and Sandhills Primary (509 students) alongside Frances F. Mack Intermediate.

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 Frances F. Mack Intermediate compares

Frances F. Mack Intermediate 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 13.9:1 ▼ 3% 14.3:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% ▲ 35% 74.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 515 top 54% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

13.9:1
Leaner classes than 58% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
515
Bigger than 64% 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
13.9:1
students per teacher - 3% below state mean
Top 48% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 52% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
61.2%
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
$13,530
per pupil, district-wide - below South Carolina avg of $14,558
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 515 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
74
in-school suspensions + 66 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 14.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 27.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.

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

White 47.8%
Hispanic or Latino 28.7%
African American 15.1%
Two or More 7.4%
Asian 0.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%

Largest group: White at 47.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 66.1/100

Simpson diversity index - at 66.1, Frances F. Mack Intermediate is more mixed than the South Carolina school average of 52.7.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lexington 04, which includes Frances F. Mack Intermediate.

$13,530
Per student
-7%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 26.9%
State 52.6%
Federal 20.5%

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 Frances F. Mack Intermediate Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Swansea High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Sandhills Primary Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Sandhills Middle Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Lexington Four Early Childhood Center Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Sandhills Elementary Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Frances F. Mack Intermediate's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Lexington 04 · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary 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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Frances F. Mack Intermediate's federal record.

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 Frances F. Mack Intermediate

How many students attend Frances F. Mack Intermediate?

Frances F. Mack Intermediate has 515 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Gaston, SC.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Frances F. Mack Intermediate?

The student-teacher ratio at Frances F. Mack Intermediate is 13.9:1, which is 3% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 11% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Frances F. Mack Intermediate?

100.0% of students at Frances F. Mack Intermediate are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Frances F. Mack Intermediate?

The largest demographic group at Frances F. Mack Intermediate is White at 47.8% of enrollment, in Gaston, SC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 66.1/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Frances F. Mack Intermediate?

Frances F. Mack Intermediate has a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (lower 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 Frances F. Mack Intermediate a good school?

Frances F. Mack Intermediate earns 29/100 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 Lexington 04?

Besides Frances F. Mack Intermediate, Lexington 04 also operates Swansea High (695 students), Sandhills Primary (509 students), and Sandhills Middle (495 students). See the Lexington 04 district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.