Horry County Schools & Education
Horry County, South Carolina
NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance dataSchool Score
32/100
Percentile-style score
Score Band
Lower Signal
Graduation Rate
83.0%
National avg 87.5%
Education Statistics
Graduation Rate
83.0%
National avg 87.5%
State avg 84.2%
Per-Pupil Spending
$7,290
National avg $13,239
State avg $7,165
School Score
32/100
Percentile-style score
State avg 33/100
State Score Position
#26
of 46 counties by score
Education Data Brief: Horry County
Measured School Summary
Horry County faces educational challenges with a school score of 32/100 and a graduation rate of 83.0%, falling below typical benchmarks.
Funding Context
At $7,290 per pupil, Horry County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.
Neighbor Context
Its school score is 3% below the South Carolina average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 1.2 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 2% higher than the state norm.
School Data Brief
How to read Horry County before comparing districts
County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.
Local context that changes the interpretation
57 public schools and 1 district are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.
Overall screen
32/100
Lower measured signal. Ranks #26 of 46 South Carolina counties with school score data.
Completion
83.0%
1.2 pts below the state average
Funding context
$7,290
$125 above the state average
School coverage
57
1 district represented in the county school list.
Start with measured county context
The county-level signal is lower, so review individual schools and local records before interpreting the score. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.
Check the local school mix
Horry County has 57 public schools across 1 district, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.
Verify local rules
Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.
What Horry County school data means before you move
County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.
Dominant-district county
Horry 01 carries most of the listed public-school system, with 57 of 57 schools. Start there, then verify whether your target address sits inside that district slice.
State position
#26
of 46 South Carolina counties with school score data. The county score is 1 points below the state average.
Data confidence
Usable
3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.
K-12 continuity check
These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.
Horry 01
Elementary to high school visible
47,357 students
57 listed schools in this county slice.
District reality check
Horry 01 is the largest listed district slice, with 57 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.
What the data cannot tell you
NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.
Questions to ask before choosing an address
Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Horry County?
Which attendance zones, transfer rules, and transportation policies apply inside the local district?
What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?
Which charter, magnet, or virtual options require a lottery, application window, separate transportation plan, or address eligibility check?
Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?
Data Story
Horry County Manages Large-Scale Consolidated District of 47,357 Students
Education data brief for Horry County, South Carolina.
Horry County operates a single massive school district, Horry 01, which oversees 57 public schools serving 47,357 students. This administrative structure results in an average school size of 861 students, significantly higher than many neighboring rural counties. The largest school, Carolina Forest High, enrolls 3,059 students, followed by St. James High with 1,837. Despite the scale of operations, the county's composite school score of 31.9 falls just below the South Carolina state average of 33.4 and well under the national median of 50.0. The graduation rate of 83.0% is below the state average of 84.2% and the national mark of 87.0%. Per-pupil expenditure is $7,290, which closely aligns with the state average of $7,165 but is approximately 44% lower than the national average of $13,000. Compare district boundaries before drawing conclusions.
Sources
- NCES Common Core of Data
- U.S. Census Bureau ACS
School Overview
Total Schools
57
in Horry County
Reported Enrollment
47,357
57 schools reporting
School Districts
1
district
Charter Schools
4
7% of total
School Level Breakdown
1 School District in Horry County
57 Public Schools in Horry County
Sorted by reported enrollment. Dedicated profile pages are available for 14 high-enrollment schools; every NCES public school remains listed here.
NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance dataLevel
Showing 20 of 57 matching schools
| School Name | Profile | District | Location | Grades | Type / Flags | Reported Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Forest High | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Suburb: Midsize | 9–12 | High | 3,059 |
| St. James High | Profile | Horry 01 | Murrells Inlet, 29576Suburb: Midsize | 9–12 | High | 1,837 |
| Socastee High | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29588Suburb: Midsize | 9–12 | High | 1,719 |
| Conway High | Profile | Horry 01 | Conway, 29526City: Small | 9–12 | High | 1,713 |
| North Myrtle Beach High | Profile | Horry 01 | Little River, 29566Suburb: Midsize | 9–12 | High | 1,643 |
| Myrtle Beach High | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29577City: Small | 9–12 | High | 1,633 |
| River Oaks Elementary | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Suburb: Midsize | PK–5 | Primary | 1,314 |
| North Myrtle Beach Middle | Profile | Horry 01 | Little River, 29566Rural: Fringe | 6–8 | Middle | 1,286 |
| Carolina Forest Elementary | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Suburb: Midsize | PK–5 | Primary | 1,246 |
| Ten Oaks Middle | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Suburb: Midsize | 6–8 | Middle | 1,134 |
| Myrtle Beach Middle | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29577City: Small | 6–8 | Middle | 1,124 |
| Ocean Bay Elementary | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Rural: Fringe | PK–5 | Primary | 1,054 |
| Myrtle Beach Elementary | Profile | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29577City: Small | 3–5 | Primary | 1,042 |
| Waccamaw Elementary | Profile | Horry 01 | Conway, 29526Suburb: Midsize | PK–5 | Primary | 993 |
| St. James Middle | Record | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29588Suburb: Midsize | 6–8 | Middle | 920 |
| Whittemore Park Middle | Record | Horry 01 | Conway, 29527City: Small | 6–8 | Middle | 892 |
| Aynor High | Record | Horry 01 | Aynor, 29511Rural: Distant | 9–12 | High | 882 |
| Forestbrook Elementary | Record | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29579Suburb: Midsize | PK–5 | Primary | 881 |
| Lakewood Elementary | Record | Horry 01 | Myrtle Beach, 29575Suburb: Midsize | PK–5 | Primary | 880 |
| Loris High | Record | Horry 01 | Loris, 29569Rural: Distant | 9–12 | High | 875 |
Carolina Forest High
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29579 / Suburb: Midsize
St. James High
Horry 01
Murrells Inlet, 29576 / Suburb: Midsize
Socastee High
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29588 / Suburb: Midsize
Conway High
Horry 01
Conway, 29526 / City: Small
North Myrtle Beach High
Horry 01
Little River, 29566 / Suburb: Midsize
Myrtle Beach High
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29577 / City: Small
River Oaks Elementary
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29579 / Suburb: Midsize
North Myrtle Beach Middle
Horry 01
Little River, 29566 / Rural: Fringe
Carolina Forest Elementary
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29579 / Suburb: Midsize
Ten Oaks Middle
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29579 / Suburb: Midsize
Myrtle Beach Middle
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29577 / City: Small
Ocean Bay Elementary
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29579 / Rural: Fringe
Myrtle Beach Elementary
Horry 01
Myrtle Beach, 29577 / City: Small
Waccamaw Elementary
Horry 01
Conway, 29526 / Suburb: Midsize
Education Funding Detail
Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure
$7,290
State avg $7,165
Compare Nearby Counties
Review Horry County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.
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See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.
View SchoolsFrequently Asked Questions
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Data Sources
Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.
Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.