The top reported proficiency rate is 68% in Social studies. The lowest is 34% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Clearwater Elementary
Clearwater Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in a small, unincorporated community in Aiken County. The school sits in a place that was named after the Clearwater textile mill, a piece of the area’s industrial past in Horse Creek Valley. The community around it is a suburban-rural mix; most residents own their homes, and the area is car-dependent with no downtown core. The largest industries are manufacturing, construction, and health care. The population has been steadily declining over the past decade, and the homeownership rate is below the national average. There is no walkable commercial district or public transit described in available sources, and specific civic amenities such as parks or a library were not identified in public records.
The school is part of the Aiken 01 district, which has seen several notable changes recently, all publicly reported. Voters approved a large school bond referendum to build new schools and upgrade facilities, which will increase property taxes. The district is also implementing a new elementary literacy curriculum based on the science of reading, a shift that affects every elementary school including Clearwater. A redistricting plan for nearby North Augusta elementary schools was approved, though it is not clear whether Clearwater’s attendance zone is affected. The board has also discussed possible school closures and consolidations in other parts of the district, but those conversations have not targeted this school’s area.
Clearwater Elementary itself serves a student body that is diverse in composition. The enrollment includes students of Hispanic, white, Black, and multiracial backgrounds, with a smaller number of American Indian or Alaska Native students. Every student at the school qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the high level of economic need in the community. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available, so a family may want to ask the school directly about those supports.
State testing results from the most recent school year show a mixed picture. In English language arts, the share of students scoring at proficient or above varied by grade, with the strongest showing in fourth grade and somewhat lower results in third and fifth. In mathematics, the pattern is more uneven: third-grade results were markedly stronger than those in fourth and fifth, where the proficient share dropped considerably. Fourth-grade science results were reported, and about a third of students met the proficiency threshold. A family looking at these numbers should be aware that South Carolina changed cut scores for ELA and science in this testing cycle, which may affect comparability with prior years. The school’s overall proficiency trend data is limited to a single year, so it is not possible to see whether performance is improving or declining over time.
Because Clearwater Elementary only serves grades PK through 5, there is no graduation rate to report. No chronic absenteeism data, disciplinary data, or staffing ratios were available in the provided information, so a parent would need to seek those directly from the school or district. Program offerings such as enrichment, gifted, or special classes were also not in the data, which is a notable gap for a family deciding whether this school meets their child’s needs.
A comparison of this school to others in Aiken County is not meaningful here, because the district is the only one in the county for which data was provided, and the comparison set effectively collapses to a single entity. That means the usual benchmarks of how this school stacks up against neighboring districts cannot be drawn from what is available.
In summary, Clearwater Elementary is a high-poverty elementary school in a small, slowly shrinking community. Its academic results are uneven, with stronger English language arts performance than math, especially in the upper grades. The district is investing in new facilities and curriculum, but families may want to ask about specific services, special education, English learner supports, and enrichment opportunities to get a fuller picture of what the school provides day to day.
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