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What advice would you give to incoming students at Buford Elementary?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
792
Elementary
DISTRICT 582 · STATE 526
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LANCASTER 01·NCES 450258000671
Buford Elementary
1906 North Rocky River Road, Lancaster, SC 29720 · (803) 286-0026 · Lancaster County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALREGULAR SCHOOL792 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
16.6:1
48 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.5:1 · STATE 13.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
,
Title I proxy
STATE 77%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 40 | 5% |
| Kindergarten | 103 | 13% |
| Grade 1 | 125 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 127 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 129 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 131 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 137 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (103) is 25% smaller than its 5th grade class (137).
Student demographics
30%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 65% · STATE 67% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
SC READY 2024-25 . % Meets or Exceeds ExpectationsEnglish Language Arts
73.0%
SC avg 59.7% . +6.9pp since 2023
Math
79.9%
SC avg 44.2% . +0.4pp since 2023
What this means: On the SC READY, South Carolina's statewide test, about 73 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 80 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all South Carolina schools, those numbers are about 60 and 44. Reading and writing scores are up about 7 points since 2023, while math scores have held steady.
SC READY results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 73.0% | 79.9% |
| 2023-24 | 66.1% | 79.5% |
% Meets or Exceeds Expectations, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SC READY. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
Where Buford Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In South Carolina | In Lancaster County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 79.9% | #31 of 635 ▼ 14 | #3 of 12 ▼ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 73.0% | #141 of 635 ▲ 1 | #4 of 12 ▼ 1 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 792 | #96 of 709 | #4 of 12 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 16.6:1 | #613 of 656 | #10 of 11 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 30.1% | #590 of 656 | #11 of 11 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +9.2% | #100 of 187 | N/A |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
792
+85 (+12%) vs 2020
+13% since 1990-91, when it was 700
Student : Teacher
16.6:1
was 17.2:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 792 | 47.6 | 16.6:1 | N/A |
| 2023-24 | 758 | 45.7 | 16.6:1 | 66% (502) |
| 2022-23 | 779 | 41.4 | 18.8:1 | 70% (548) |
| 2020-21 | 707 | 41 | 17.2:1 | 58% (413) |
| 2017-18 | 725 | 41 | 17.7:1 | 55% (399) |
| 2015-16 | 742 | 40 | 18.6:1 | 58% (434) |
| 2010-11 | 823 | 42 | 19.6:1 | 54% (446) |
| 2000-01 | 775 | 42 | 18.4:1 | 37% (288) |
| 1990-91 | 700 | 37 | 18.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Buford Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students up 9% (725 to 792); teachers up 16% (41 to 47.6).
About Buford Elementary
Buford Elementary sits in Lancaster, South Carolina, and is classified as an elementary school. The latest federal count shows 792 students in pre-K through 5. The average for elementary schools in South Carolina is about 526 students, so this school is 51% larger than average.
Lancaster 01 runs Buford Elementary along with 21 other schools, enrolling 15,417 students in total.
The large majority of students at Buford Elementary, 83%, are White. Next come 6% Black, 6% Hispanic, and 5% multiracial. The county population is about 69% White. The chance that two students picked at random at Buford Elementary belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 30%.
Buford Elementary operates with 47.6 full-time-equivalent teachers, a ratio of about 16.6:1. That ratio is over the 13.3:1 average for elementary schools in South Carolina.
According to the American Community Survey, in Lancaster County, median household income is about $78,869, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 34%, and about 9% of people live in poverty. A total of 23 public schools operate in Lancaster County, serving about 15,417 students.
Buford Middle is the public school closest to Buford Elementary, about 0.1 miles away. Inside a five-mile radius, there are 2 other public schools.
Buford Elementary falls in the Rural: Distant locale category, used for schools in rural territory some distance from an urban area.
Federal counts put enrollment at 707 in 2020-21 and 792 in 2024-25, a 12% increase.
Parents and students can post about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Buford Elementary. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Lancaster County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
104,475
Census ACS
Median income
$78,869
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
34%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
23
15,417 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Lancaster 01
- Indian Land HighHigh · 1,905 students
- Lancaster HighHigh · 1,390 students
- Indian Land IntermediateMiddle · 1,181 students
- Harrisburg ElementaryElementary · 1,161 students
- Indian Land MiddleMiddle · 1,102 students
- Indian Land ElementaryElementary · 1,042 students
Other schools in Lancaster
- Indian Land HighHigh · 1,905 students
- Lancaster HighHigh · 1,390 students
- Van Wyck ElementaryElementary · 820 students
- North ElementaryElementary · 645 students
- Buford HighHigh · 532 students
- A. R. Rucker MiddleMiddle · 477 students
Other Buford Elementary schools
2 other US public schools in 3 states are named Buford Elementary. Buford Elementary is the largest of the 3.
- Buford ElementaryLennox, CA · 513 students
- Buford Elementary SchoolBuford, GA · 431 students
Nearby schools
- Buford Middle0.1 mi · 374
- Buford High0.4 mi · 532
- Prospect Elementary6.9 mi · 373
- A. R. Rucker Middle6.9 mi · 477
- Clinton Elementary8.3 mi · 412
- Discovery Charter of Lancaster8.8 mi · 146
Frequently asked questions
About Buford ElementaryHow many students attend Buford Elementary?
Buford Elementary enrolls approximately 792 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Buford Elementary serve?
Buford Elementary serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many teachers does Buford Elementary have?
Buford Elementary employs 48 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.6:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Buford Elementary?
At Buford Elementary, the student body is approximately 83% White, 6% Hispanic, 6% Black, 5% Two or more.
Is Buford Elementary public or private?
Buford Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Lancaster 01.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.