Enrollment
398
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Garden City, SC
Seaside Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Seaside Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 60/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 450249000192
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 60
📋 Attendance 56
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Seaside Elementary earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 81% of South Carolina schools.
- 60
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.7:1
- small classes for South Carolina
- 67.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 398
- students enrolled
Seaside Elementary has class sizes smaller than 81% of South Carolina schools. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Horry 01 · South Carolina
NCES ID 450249000192 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
67.1%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Seaside Elementary compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Seaside Elementary
Seaside Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Garden City, South Carolina, enrolling 398 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of South Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 67.1% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 398 puts it in the smaller third of South Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 95% of the 1,214 South Carolina schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 78 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need South Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #4, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (79%) and Hispanic or Latino (9%) (diversity index 37/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 199 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
17.6% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Its district draws 16.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Horry 01 also operates Carolina Forest High (3,176 students) and St. James High (1,826 students) alongside Seaside 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 Seaside Elementary compares
Seaside 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 | 11.7:1 | ▼ 18% | 14.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 67.1% | ▼ 9% | 74.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 398 | top 71% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.7:1
Leaner classes than 78% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
398
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
67.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 9% below 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
11.7:1
students per teacher
- 18% below state mean
Top 19% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 81% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
17.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$12,785
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
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 199 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
22
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.5 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 78.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.0%
Two or More 8.3%
African American 3.5%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 78.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 36.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 36.6, Seaside Elementary is less mixed than the South Carolina school average of 52.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Horry 01, which includes Seaside Elementary.
$12,785
Per student
-12%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 47.9%
State 36.1%
Federal 16.0%
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 Seaside Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Forest High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| St. James High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Conway High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Socastee High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| North Myrtle Beach High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Seaside Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,176
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 1,826
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 1,724
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 1,720
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,673
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
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 (~398 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Seaside Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Seaside Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Horry 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 Seaside Elementary
How many students attend Seaside Elementary?
Seaside Elementary has 398 students enrolled. It is a public school in Garden City, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Seaside Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Seaside Elementary is 11.7:1, which is 18% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 25% 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 Seaside Elementary?
67.1% of students at Seaside Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Seaside Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Seaside Elementary is White at 78.6% of enrollment, in Garden City, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Seaside Elementary?
Seaside Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 60/100 (higher 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 Seaside Elementary a good school?
Seaside Elementary earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 81% of South Carolina schools. 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 Horry 01?
Besides Seaside Elementary, Horry 01 also operates Carolina Forest High (3,176 students), St. James High (1,826 students), and Conway High (1,724 students). See the Horry 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.