Waterway Elementary, Little River SC

Original Research by School Decision on Waterway Elementary

Waterway Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Little River, a mainly residential community on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in Horry County. The area is a mix of housing developments, marshes, and maritime businesses, retaining the character of a historic fishing village. It is car-dependent and unincorporated, so the school exists on its own campus rather than in a traditional downtown core. The broader region has seen steady population growth, and much of the housing stock is owner-occupied, with home values and rents in the area running close to the statewide typical level.

The school enrolls a sizable student body for an elementary school. A majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a common measure of economic need. The student population is diverse, with White students making up about half of the enrollment, followed by Black students, Hispanic students, and students who identify as two or more races. Small shares of students identify as Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. Data on the share of students with individualized education plans and English learner status was not available in the material reviewed.

On state assessments, Waterway Elementary students showed solid performance in English language arts. Across the tested grades, a strong majority of students scored at the proficient level or above. Mathematics results were more varied. In third and fourth grade, a majority of students met the proficiency mark, but in fifth grade the proficiency rate dropped to below half, a notable dip that parents may want to discuss with the school. In fourth-grade science, a majority of students also scored proficient or above. Historical social studies data from a prior school year showed a high proficiency rate, but that assessment predates the current testing framework and is not directly comparable to newer results. The English language arts and mathematics data come from a single school year, so there is no trend line to show whether these results represent an improvement, a decline, or a stable pattern.

The school is a regular public school and not a charter or magnet. It is part of Horry 01, the district covering all of Horry County. No recent district-level changes of parent relevance were found during research. Because Waterway Elementary serves only elementary grades, it has no graduation rate, no high school course access data, and no postsecondary outcomes to report. Those measures do not apply to this grade band, so their absence is expected and not a sign of any gap in the school's offering.

This is a school where academic performance in English language arts is a consistent strength across the elementary grades it serves. Mathematics performance is stronger in the lower tested grades, with a need for attention in the upper grade. The student body reflects the broader economic and demographic mix of the Little River area, with a majority of families using meal assistance. For a family looking at this school, the core question is how the school supports mathematics proficiency as students move through the grades, particularly as they approach fifth grade. The absence of multi-year testing data makes it harder to judge whether the fifth-grade math score is a pattern or an outlier, so a direct conversation with the school about that subject would be a reasonable step for parents of older elementary students.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 63% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 464%

School 64% · District 61% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 55% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 67% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 472%

School 72% · District 70% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 570%

School 70% · District 67% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Science

Grade 462%

School 62% · District 57% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 581%

School 81% · District 80% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

This schoolHorry 01, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income65%Higher-income77%12 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income69%Higher-income80%11 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income66%Higher-income77%11 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income63%Higher-income79%16 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income62%Higher-income70%9 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income39%Higher-income61%22 pp gap