1
Which teacher or staff member at Dent Middle deserves more recognition?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,059
Middle
DISTRICT 927 · STATE 622
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·RICHLAND 02·NCES 450339001311
Dent Middle
2721 Decker Boulevard, Columbia, SC 29206 · (803) 699-2750 · Richland County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL1,059 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 44% of South Carolina public middle schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ·Beats expectations Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded South Carolina public middle schools
Student : Teacher
12.8:1
83 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.2:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
,
Title I proxy
STATE 77%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 357 | 34% |
| Grade 7 | 378 | 36% |
| Grade 8 | 324 | 31% |
Student demographics
64%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 56% · 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
46.2%
SC avg 59.7% . +1.4pp since 2023
Math
32.1%
SC avg 44.2% . +1.6pp since 2023
What this means: On the SC READY, South Carolina's statewide test, about 46 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 32 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 1 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 2 points.
SC READY results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 46.2% | 32.1% |
| 2023-24 | 44.8% | 30.5% |
% Meets or Exceeds Expectations, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SC READY. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
Where Dent Middle ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In South Carolina | In Richland County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 32.1% | #118 of 249 ▲ 3 | #5 of 16 ▲ 1 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 46.2% | #176 of 249 ▼ 34 | #8 of 16 ▼ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,059 | #17 of 256 | #1 of 16 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.8:1 | #72 of 241 | #10 of 16 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 64.5% | #74 of 241 | #2 of 16 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -15.3% | #50 of 137 | #4 of 10 |
Ranked against other public middle 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
1,059
-137 (-11%) vs 2020
-10% since 1990-91, when it was 1,173
Student : Teacher
12.8:1
was 13.8:1
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 | 1,059 | 83 | 12.8:1 | N/A |
| 2023-24 | 1,035 | 92.3 | 11.2:1 | 100% (1,035) |
| 2022-23 | 1,018 | 83.5 | 12.2:1 | 100% (1,018) |
| 2020-21 | 1,196 | 87 | 13.8:1 | 66% (789) |
| 2017-18 | 1,251 | 87.3 | 14.3:1 | 57% (711) |
| 2015-16 | 1,207 | 86 | 14.0:1 | 55% (661) |
| 2010-11 | 1,300 | 87 | 14.9:1 | 50% (655) |
| 2000-01 | 1,180 | 83 | 14.2:1 | 40% (474) |
| 1990-91 | 1,173 | 66 | 17.8:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Dent Middle.
Since 2017-18: students down 15% (1,251 to 1,059); teachers down 5% (87.3 to 83).
About Dent Middle
Dent Middle is a high-enrollment middle school found in Columbia, South Carolina. The school's 1,059 students are in grades 6 through 8. Statewide, middle schools in South Carolina average about 622 students each.
Richland 02 is the district for Dent Middle. It has 32 schools and 28,841 students.
Dent Middle is 53% Black by enrollment. The rest of enrollment is 18% Hispanic, 17% White, 6% Asian, and 4% multiracial. The school's diversity index is 64%, meaning two students picked at random have a 64% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Staffing totals 83 full-time-equivalent teachers, and the student-to-teacher ratio is 12.8:1. That is lower than the 13.8:1 average for middle schools in South Carolina.
Measured against South Carolina public middle schools, Dent Middle receives a C+. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Census Bureau estimates for Richland County show that the median household income is $63,784, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 41% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 12%. There are 104 public schools in Richland County, enrolling about 60,410 students in all.
The closest public school, Jackson Creek Elementary, is about 0.4 miles from Dent Middle. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles.
NCES describes the area around Dent Middle as Suburb: Large, meaning in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
2024-25 enrollment was 1,059, an 11% decrease from 1,196 in 2020-21.
Topics for discussion here include science fairs, picture day, and bus routes. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Richland County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
422,117
Census ACS
Median income
$63,784
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
41%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
12%
Below federal line
Schools in county
104
60,410 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Richland 02
- Spring Valley HighHigh · 2,230 students
- Blythewood HighHigh · 2,164 students
- Westwood HighHigh · 1,743 students
- Ridge View HighHigh · 1,631 students
- Richland Northeast HighHigh · 1,340 students
- E. L. Wright MiddleElementary · 1,275 students
Other schools in Columbia
- SC Connections AcademyCombined · 6,152 students
- Spring Valley HighHigh · 2,230 students
- Carolus Online AcademyCombined · 1,786 students
- Ridge View HighHigh · 1,631 students
- Richland Northeast HighHigh · 1,340 students
- A. C. Flora HighHigh · 1,328 students
Nearby schools
- Jackson Creek Elementary0.4 mi · 551
- Forest Lake Elementary0.8 mi · 652
- Joseph Keels Elementary1.0 mi · 465
- Richland Northeast High1.1 mi · 1,340
- L. W. Conder Elementary1.4 mi · 489
- Satchel Ford Elementary2.1 mi · 721
Frequently asked questions
About Dent MiddleHow large is Dent Middle?
Dent Middle enrolls approximately 1,059 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does Dent Middle serve?
Dent Middle serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at Dent Middle?
Approximately 12.8:1 students per teacher at Dent Middle.
How diverse is Dent Middle?
Dent Middle reports a student body of 17% White, 18% Hispanic, 53% Black, 6% Asian, 4% Two or more.
What district is Dent Middle in?
Dent Middle is part of Richland 02.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.