Andrew Jackson Middle, Kershaw SC

Original Research by School Decision on Andrew Jackson Middle

Andrew Jackson Middle School is a regular public school in Kershaw, South Carolina, serving grades six through eight as part of the Lancaster 01 school district. The school is located on the Kershaw Camden Highway, on the outskirts of a small town that was founded as a railroad depot and later rebuilt after a downtown fire. The community is rural and historic, with two National Register Historic Districts and a commercial core that remains modest in scale. The town's population has been stable to slightly declining, and its major employer is the Haile Gold Mine, located a few miles away. Housing in the area is moderately priced, well below state and national benchmarks, reflecting the area’s rural character and limited recent development.

The school enrolls a moderate number of students across the three middle grades. The student body is predominantly White, with a substantial Black population and smaller shares of Hispanic, Asian, and multiracial students. More than two-thirds of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a level that signals significant economic need in the community. Data on the number of students receiving special education services or English learner support was not provided, nor were figures on chronic absenteeism or discipline. Parents may want to ask the school directly about these areas, as they are important for understanding the full support picture.

State testing results from the 2024-25 school year show a mixed academic picture. In English language arts, proficiency rates varied noticeably by grade, with seventh graders performing at a stronger level than sixth and eighth graders. In math, proficiency was lower across all grades, with a modest share of students meeting the state’s proficient benchmark. Science results were available only for grade six and were similar to the math pattern. Social studies data was from an older assessment cycle and is not comparable to current measures. Because only one year of data is available, no trend can be drawn. Overall, the school demonstrates some bright spots in seventh-grade reading and writing, while math and other subjects are areas where a family might want to learn more about instructional supports and intervention programs.

The school offers a standard middle school program for its grade band. Information on course offerings, advanced tracks, or elective programming was not included in the available data. The school’s website, which can be found through the district, may provide details on clubs, athletics, and academic pathways. No district-level strategic updates or recent policy changes were found in public records that could be reported here, so that dimension remains unaddressed.

Andrew Jackson Middle is a school that serves a small, rural community with significant economic need. Its academic results are uneven, with some grades and subjects producing stronger outcomes than others. For families considering this school, a closer look at the specific programs, teaching supports, and enrichment options would be worthwhile, especially given the gaps in publicly available data on special populations and disciplinary climate.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 644%

School 44% · District 53% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▲ 10 pts above state median

Grade 736%

School 36% · District 41% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▲ 8 pts above state median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 33% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 645%

School 45% · District 57% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median

Grade 763%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 8 pts above state median

Grade 846%

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

▼ 7 pts below state median

Science

Grade 640%

School 40% · District 56% · ▼ 16 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median

Social studies

Grade 742%

School 42% · District 61% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 22 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-income34%Higher-income66%32 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income57%Higher-income78%20 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income35%Higher-income64%30 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income36%Higher-income58%23 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income28%Higher-income53%25 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income20%Higher-income63%43 pp gap