Enrollment
692
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 450391001192
Lake Marion High School — Santee, SC
Federal NCES profile for Lake Marion High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 36
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 54
📋 Attendance 6
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Orangeburg · South Carolina
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.1:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lake Marion High School compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Lake Marion High School reports 692 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 43.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% above the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 100.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 35% above the South Carolina average and 93% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 231 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 37.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Orangeburg spends $16,538 per pupil district-wide, below the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 33.7% from local sources (property taxes), 46.7% from the state, and 19.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), calculated from 5 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Lake Marion High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.1:1 | ▲ 13% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 692 | top 66% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
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
16.1:1
students per teacher
— 13% above state mean
Top 78% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 22% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
37.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$16,538
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 231 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
218
in-school suspensions + 288 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 31.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 73.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 4 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 692 Top 66% in South Carolina — larger than 34% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 43.0
Students per teacher 16.1:1 +13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% +35% vs state
NCES ID 450391001192
Student demographics
African American 85.4%
White 7.9%
Hispanic or Latino 3.6%
Two or More 1.9%
Asian 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 85.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 231:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 37.7%
In-school suspensions 218
Out-of-school suspensions 288
Expulsions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Orangeburg, which includes Lake Marion High School.
$16,538
Per student
-4%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 33.7%
State 46.7%
Federal 19.6%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 992
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 635
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 625
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Enrollment
- 614
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 587
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Lake Marion High School
How many students attend Lake Marion High School?
Lake Marion High School has 692 students enrolled. It is a high school in Santee, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lake Marion High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Lake Marion High School is 16.1:1, which is 13% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 1% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lake Marion High School?
100.0% of students at Lake Marion High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lake Marion High School?
The largest demographic group at Lake Marion High School is African American at 85.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Santee, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lake Marion High School?
Lake Marion High School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.