The top reported proficiency rate is 62% in English language arts. The lowest is 47% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Savannah Grove Elementary
Savannah Grove Elementary is a regular public school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Effingham, a small, unincorporated farming community in Florence County, South Carolina. The area sits along the Lynches River and blends rural farmland with large-scale agribusiness, anchored by the McCall Farms food-processing plant, which is the dominant local employer. The school is part of the Florence 01 district, which underwent a mandatory consolidation in 2022 that combined the former Florence districts One and Four under a single nine-member board of trustees. That restructuring changed governance and attendance zones for families across a wider geographic area.
Academically, Savannah Grove Elementary’s state test results offer a mixed picture that varies by subject and grade. In English language arts, the school shows a clear upward trend as students move through the grades. Third and fourth graders both perform around the same mark, with a solid majority meeting state proficiency standards. By fifth grade, a strong share of students reach that bar, indicating that literacy skills build effectively over time. Math proficiency is more uneven. Third graders post a solid rate, but fourth and fifth graders see a noticeable drop, with fewer than half of the students in those grades scoring proficient. That pattern raises a question a parent may want to explore further with the school, particularly how math instruction and support change between third and fourth grade. Fourth-grade science results land roughly in the middle of the range, with a majority of students meeting the standard. Social studies data is only available from several years ago, so it does not reflect current performance. Overall, when averaged across all tested subjects and grades, the school’s proficiency index places it in the top quartile among districts in Florence County, but that comparison is at the district level and masks the grade-level variation within the school.
The student body at Savannah Grove Elementary is relatively small for a K-5 school. A substantial majority of students are Black, with a smaller white population and a modest share of students who are two or more races. Every enrolled student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, signaling very high economic need across the school. Data on special education identification and English learner status was not available from the source records, so those dimensions of student support cannot be assessed here.
The housing market around Effingham is more affordable than both the state and national benchmarks. A typical home in the area costs noticeably less than the median for South Carolina as a whole, and the estimated monthly mortgage payment is well below the national median rent, making homeownership relatively accessible. Rents are also moderate, and the overall cost burden for housing appears manageable for many households. These conditions fit families who are looking for a lower-cost entry point into homeownership in a rural setting.
The district brief notes the 2022 consolidation as a parent-relevant change. Families who lived in the former District Four area now have different representation and potentially different school assignments, though the specific effect on Savannah Grove Elementary’s attendance zone is not detailed in available records. The school itself has no public information about program offerings, course access, or staffing ratios, so the breadth of enrichment or intervention options is unclear.
Savannah Grove Elementary serves a high-need population in a rural agribusiness community, with a housing market that is affordable relative to the rest of the state. Academically, the school’s strength is in English language arts, particularly by fifth grade, while math performance slips in the upper grades and warrants a closer look. The school fits a family seeking a small, community-based elementary school with a strong literacy track record and a student body that reflects the local agricultural economy. A parent who prioritizes math outcomes in fourth and fifth grade may want to ask the school directly about its curriculum, interventions, and how it supports students who are not yet proficient.
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