Rafting Creek Elementary

Rafting Creek Elementary is a K-5 school of very small scale in Rembert, South Carolina, part of Sumter 01, serveing 125 students in grades pre-K through 5. That puts it 76% below the typical public school in South Carolina, which averages around 526 students.

Sumter 01 runs 24 schools in total, collectively educating 13,871 students. Rafting Creek Elementary is one of those campuses.

On demographics, Rafting Creek Elementary shows that 83% of students identify as Black, making the school strongly Black-majority. Beyond that, the school records 10% Hispanic, 5% White, 2% Native American. That is visibly more Black than the county at large, where the share is closer to 46%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Rafting Creek Elementary lists 10 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 12.3:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.3:1 average.

Across the wider county, community-level numbers for Sumter County indicate the typical household earns roughly $56,693 per year, about 24% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 13%. Across Sumter County's 27 public schools (combined enrollment of about 14,608 students), Rafting Creek Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Lewis High is the nearest neighboring public school, about 3.2 miles from this campus. 2 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius.

Rafting Creek Elementary operates from an outlying location.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count contracted 22%: 160 students in 2018 compared to 125 in 2025. Over the same period, the Black share edged down from 91% to 83%. Class-load math has fell: from 13.3:1 in 2018 to 12.3:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. The community welcomes input from current and former families.