Enrollment
293
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Joanna, SC
Joanna Woodson Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Joanna Woodson Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 450264000705
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 37
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Joanna Woodson Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the South Carolina median.
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14:1
- students per teacher
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 293
- students enrolled
Joanna Woodson Elementary has class sizes near the South Carolina median. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Laurens 56 · South Carolina
NCES ID 450264000705 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Joanna Woodson Elementary compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Joanna Woodson Elementary
Joanna Woodson Elementary is a high-poverty, small elementary school in Joanna, South Carolina, enrolling 293 students.
At 14:1, 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.
Enrollment of 293 puts it in the smaller third of South Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,214 scored South Carolina schools.
Against 220 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #80.
Its student body is led by White (61%) and African American (21%) (diversity index 57/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 293 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 25.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 24.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Laurens 56 also operates Clinton High (811 students) and Clinton Middle (580 students) alongside Joanna Woodson 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 Joanna Woodson Elementary compares
Joanna Woodson 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 | 14:1 | ▼ 2% | 14.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 293 | top 85% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14:1
Leaner classes than 57% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
293
Bigger than 31% 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
14:1
students per teacher
- 2% below state mean
Top 50% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 50% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
25.3%
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
$14,184
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 293 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.1 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
White 61.1%
African American 21.2%
Hispanic or Latino 8.9%
Two or More 8.9%
Largest group: White at 61.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 56.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 56.6, Joanna Woodson 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 Laurens 56, which includes Joanna Woodson Elementary.
$14,184
Per student
-3%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 30.4%
State 45.3%
Federal 24.3%
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 Joanna Woodson Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clinton High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Clinton Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Eastside Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Clinton Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| M. S. Bailey Child Development Center | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Joanna Woodson Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 811
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 580
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 462
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 422
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 139
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
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.
Similar enrollment (~293 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Joanna Woodson Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Joanna Woodson Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Laurens 56'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 Joanna Woodson Elementary
How many students attend Joanna Woodson Elementary?
Joanna Woodson Elementary has 293 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Joanna, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Joanna Woodson Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Joanna Woodson Elementary is 14:1, which is 2% 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 Joanna Woodson Elementary?
100.0% of students at Joanna Woodson Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Joanna Woodson Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Joanna Woodson Elementary is White at 61.1% of enrollment, in Joanna, SC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 56.6/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Joanna Woodson Elementary?
Joanna Woodson Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Joanna Woodson Elementary a good school?
Joanna Woodson Elementary earns 48/100 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 Laurens 56?
Besides Joanna Woodson Elementary, Laurens 56 also operates Clinton High (811 students), Clinton Middle (580 students), and Eastside Elementary (462 students). See the Laurens 56 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.