Buford Middle, Lancaster SC - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Buford Middle

Buford Middle serves students in grades six through eight within the Lancaster 01 district, a regular public school located on North Rocky River Road in Lancaster. The school draws from the Buford area of Lancaster County, a community that sits within a small city that serves as the county seat and is part of the Charlotte metropolitan area. The student body is predominantly White, with smaller shares of Black and Hispanic students and a small number of students identifying as two or more races. A majority of students come from households that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mix of income levels in the attendance zone.

On the state’s SC Ready assessments, academic performance varies by subject and grade. In English language arts, roughly half to just under two-thirds of students met the state standard across sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, with seventh grade showing the strongest result. In mathematics, the share of students reaching proficiency was somewhat lower, hovering around the halfway mark in sixth and eighth grades and falling below that in seventh grade. Science results for sixth graders were weaker, with a smaller share reaching proficiency. Social studies data is from several years ago and used a different assessment framework, so it offers limited current insight. The state changed cut scores for ELA and science in the most recent testing year, which makes direct comparisons to past years unreliable. Overall, the academic picture shows a middle school where a solid portion of students are meeting state expectations, especially in reading, while math and science present areas where the school may be working to strengthen outcomes.

Data on chronic absenteeism, discipline, and staffing ratios were not available for this school, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those areas. As a middle school, there is no graduation rate to report. The school has no magnet or charter designation, and its Title I status was not provided in the data.

Lancaster is a small city with a historic downtown core surrounded by residential neighborhoods. Its economy historically relied on textile manufacturing, and today healthcare, retail, and education are key sectors, including the University of South Carolina at Lancaster campus. The region has experienced steady population growth, driven in part by its position within the Charlotte metro area. The housing market has softened slightly in the most recent period, and the area remains more affordable relative to the nearby urban job center. Commute times are typical of a metro-area exurb. We looked for recent district-level developments such as bond referendums, curriculum changes, or tax measures but found limited publicly reported information to include; the district may have updates that are not captured here.

For families considering Buford Middle, the school offers a regular public school setting in a growing but still small-city area. The academic data suggests that a parent whose child is strong in reading may find the school a comfortable fit, while those concerned about math and science achievement may want to learn more about the school’s support programs and any initiatives aimed at raising performance in those subjects. The school’s size and grade band are typical for a middle school, and its location outside the downtown core serves a predominantly rural-suburban community within Lancaster County.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 651%

School 51% · District 53% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 17 pts above state median

Grade 742%

School 42% · District 41% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 33% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 22 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 653%

School 53% · District 57% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 1 pts above state median

Grade 763%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 7 pts above state median

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 52% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median

Science

Grade 638%

School 38% · District 56% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median

Social studies

Grade 751%

School 51% · District 61% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median

This schoolLancaster 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 6Lower-income50%Higher-income58%8 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income59%Higher-income68%9 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income39%Higher-income55%16 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income49%Higher-income55%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income38%Higher-income48%10 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income41%Higher-income60%19 pp gap