Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Summary:

Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy is an elementary school located in Kingstree, South Carolina, serving grades 3-5 with a total enrollment of 368 students. The school is part of the Williamsburg 01 school district, which is ranked 57 out of 75 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite the school's leadership-focused name, Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy consistently ranks in the bottom 25% of elementary schools in South Carolina, with a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger for the past several years. The school's student population is predominantly African American (90.22%), which is significantly higher than the state average and nearby schools like Greeleyville Primary and C.E. Murray Elementary. Additionally, 100% of the students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage among the student population.

Despite the high level of funding, with per-student spending ranging from $8,592 to $14,756 in recent years, the school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics are significantly lower than the state and district averages. This suggests that factors beyond just funding, such as school leadership, teacher quality, and student engagement, may be contributing to the school's persistent low performance. While the challenges faced by Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy are complex, the presence of a leadership-focused school name and the recent increase in per-student spending suggest that there may be efforts underway to improve the school's outcomes.


Detail:

Public 3-5

 1503 Woodland Drive
       Kingstree, SC  29556


(843) 355-7233

District: Williamsburg 01

SchoolDigger Rank:
493rd of 638 South Carolina Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $11,773 Help


Students who attend Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy usually attend:

Middle:    Kingstree Middle Magnet

Student/teacher ratio:  16.7 Help
Number of students:  368

Racial breakdown:

African American:
90.2%
White:
6.0%
Asian:
1.4%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  100% Help


 See top rated South Carolina elementary schools

 Compare Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends
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Compare Details Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy ranks worse than 77.3% of elementary schools in South Carolina. It also ranks first among 3 ranked elementary schools in the Williamsburg 01 School District! (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 23.12. (See more...)
Student Body
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Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (90.2%), White (6%), Asian (1.4%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 100% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy is 16.7. 3 elementary schools in the Williamsburg 01 School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)
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Compare Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy employs 22 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy is $11,773. 3 elementary schools in the Williamsburg 01 School District spend more per student.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy:

SchoolDigger ranks Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy 493rd of 638 South Carolina public elementary schools. (See Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
African American students:


Williamsburg 01:

SchoolDigger ranks Williamsburg 01 57th of 75 South Carolina school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

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Compare

Rank History for all students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2003 16.91 484th 542 10.7%
2004 22.99 468th 550 14.9%
2005 26.18 453rd 557 18.7%
2006 24.62 460th 559 17.7%
2007 21.02 494th 566 12.7%
2008 20.74 505th 577 12.5%
2009 14.22 536th 580 7.6%
2010 15.04 547th 589 7.1%
2011 24.98 498th 597 16.6%
2012 22.69 511th 594 14.0%
2013 29.93 475th 599 20.7%
2014 20.07 566th 630 10.2%
2015 19.87 566th 638 11.3%
2016 16.93 551st 619 11.0%
2017 15.47 573rd 639 10.3%
2018 10.78 586th 624 6.1%
2019 10.63 597th 643 7.2%
2021 7.43 606th 622 2.6%
2022 9.61 588th 625 5.9%
2023 13.65 572nd 644 11.2%
2024 23.12 493rd 638 22.7%
See the entire list of South Carolina Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 14.12 555th 588 5.6%
2019 13.17 557th 600 7.2%
2021 9.02 564th 580 2.8%
2022 10.91 571st 600 4.8%
2023 18.21 525th 608 13.7%
2024 29.56 444th 599 25.9%
See the entire list of Best South Carolina Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 13.83 519th 570 8.9%
2019 11.56 544th 588 7.5%
2021 9.53 522nd 554 5.8%
2022 11.00 527th 573 8.0%
2023 11.68 532nd 580 8.3%
2024 19.66 475th 565 15.9%
See the entire list of Best South Carolina Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 20.63 141st 161 12.4%
2019 10.37 186th 189 1.6%
See the entire list of Best South Carolina Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Male students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 7.43 558th 571 2.3%
2019 9.26 557th 590 5.6%
2021 4.92 554th 561 1.2%
2022 8.11 553rd 579 4.5%
2023 14.69 512th 582 12.0%
2024 24.97 432nd 568 23.9%
See the entire list of Best South Carolina Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools SC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 28.94 335th 412 18.7%
2019 29.18 335th 421 20.4%
2021 21.02 310th 350 11.4%
2022 25.31 324th 393 17.6%
2023 36.15 263rd 394 33.2%
2024 45.67 192nd 369 48.0%
See the entire list of Best South Carolina Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Data source: test scores: South Carolina Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 





Data source: South Carolina Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 93 514 0 0 1 n/a n/a 0 608
1989 95 539 0 0 1 n/a n/a 0 635
1990 81 553 0 0 1 n/a n/a 0 635
1991 82 569 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 651
1992 67 528 0 0 1 n/a n/a 0 596
1993 52 504 0 0 3 n/a n/a 0 559
1994 40 486 0 0 3 n/a n/a 0 529
1995 29 539 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 569
1996 29 539 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 569
1997 34 563 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 598
1998 38 507 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 546
1999 40 501 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 542
2000 36 552 0 1 0 n/a n/a 0 589
2001 31 577 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 608
2002 22 574 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 596
2003 22 574 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 596
2004 21 569 0 0 0 n/a n/a 0 590
2005 19 536 1 0 0 n/a n/a 1 557
2006 15 496 1 3 0 n/a n/a 1 516
2007 11 472 1 1 0 n/a n/a 0 485
2008 13 454 3 1 0 n/a n/a 0 471
2009 20 446 1 3 0 n/a n/a 0 470
2010 17 460 1 0 0 n/a n/a 0 478
2011 4 464 1 1 0 0 3 0 473
2012 7 427 1 0 0 0 2 0 437
2013 12 378 1 1 1 0 4 0 397
2014 14 347 2 0 0 0 6 0 369
2015 13 311 1 0 0 0 0 0 325
2016 20 390 0 3 1 0 0 0 414
2017 22 376 2 2 2 0 1 0 405
2018 22 353 5 3 2 0 7 0 392
2019 18 402 3 2 2 1 7 0 435
2020 20 373 5 4 1 0 9 0 412
2021 16 338 3 0 1 0 4 0 362
2022 35 306 2 1 1 0 4 0 349
2023 22 332 5 3 1 0 5 0 368

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 608 33.7 18.0 n/a
1989 635 33.7 18.8 n/a
1990 635 37.9 16.7 n/a
1991 651 36.9 17.6 78.6
1992 596 38.7 15.4 85.4
1993 559 36.0 15.5 90
1994 529 37.0 14.3 86
1995 569 35.0 16.3 87.7
1996 569 35.0 16.3 87.7
1997 598 32.0 18.7 87.8
1998 546 33.0 16.5 86.8
1999 542 31.0 17.5 94.8
2000 589 36.0 16.4 91.5
2001 608 34.0 17.9 94.6
2002 596 31.4 19.0 93.5
2003 596 31.4 19.0 93.5
2004 590 29.0 20.3 93.9
2005 557 28.0 19.9 94.4
2006 516 33.0 15.6 92.8
2007 485 47.0 10.3 93
2008 471 29.0 16.2 94.3
2009 470 29.0 16.2 90.6
2010 478 26.0 18.3 93.5
2011 473 30.0 15.7 92.6
2012 437 27.0 16.1 92.2
2013 397 26.0 15.2 94
2014 369 24.1 15.3 94.3
2015 325 27.0 12.0 100
2016 414 27.0 15.3 100
2017 405 25.5 15.8 100
2018 392 30.0 13.0 100
2019 435 25.0 17.4 100
2020 412 23.0 17.9 100
2021 362 22.6 16.0 100
2022 349 20.0 17.4 100
2023 368 22.0 16.7 100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 608 33.7 18.0 n/a
1989 635 33.7 18.8 n/a
1990 635 37.9 16.7 n/a
1991 651 36.9 17.6 78.6
1992 596 38.7 15.4 85.4
1993 559 36.0 15.5 90
1994 529 37.0 14.3 86
1995 569 35.0 16.3 87.7
1996 569 35.0 16.3 87.7
1997 598 32.0 18.7 87.8
1998 546 33.0 16.5 86.8
1999 542 31.0 17.5 94.8
2000 589 36.0 16.4 91.5
2001 608 34.0 17.9 94.6
2002 596 31.4 19.0 93.5
2003 596 31.4 19.0 93.5
2004 590 29.0 20.3 93.9
2005 557 28.0 19.9 94.4
2006 516 33.0 15.6 92.8
2007 485 47.0 10.3 93
2008 471 29.0 16.2 94.3
2009 470 29.0 16.2 90.6
2010 478 26.0 18.3 93.5
2011 473 30.0 15.7 92.6
2012 437 27.0 16.1 92.2
2013 397 26.0 15.2 94
2014 369 24.1 15.3 94.3
2015 325 27.0 12.0 100
2016 414 27.0 15.3 100
2017 405 25.5 15.8 100
2018 392 30.0 13.0 100
2019 435 25.0 17.4 100
2020 412 23.0 17.9 100
2021 362 22.6 16.0 100
2022 349 20.0 17.4 100
2023 368 22.0 16.7 100

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

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YearPersonnel Expenditures from Federal FundsNon-Personnel Expenditures from Federal FundsTotal Expenditures from Federal FundsPersonnel Expenditures from State and Local FundsNon-Personnel Expenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $1,175 (13.2%) $1,012 (11.4%) $2,187 (24.6%) $5,642 (63.4%) $1,066 (12.0%) $6,709 (75.4%) $8,896
2020 $1,175 (13.2%) $1,012 (11.4%) $2,187 (24.6%) $5,642 (63.4%) $1,066 (12.0%) $6,709 (75.4%) $8,896
2021 $1,127 (13.1%) $565 (6.6%) $1,691 (19.7%) $4,884 (56.8%) $2,017 (23.5%) $6,901 (80.3%) $8,592
2022 $1,424 (9.7%) $908 (6.2%) $2,332 (15.8%) $9,975 (67.6%) $2,449 (16.6%) $12,424 (84.2%) $14,756
2023 $1,825 (15.5%) $2,756 (23.4%) $4,581 (38.9%) $5,242 (44.5%) $1,950 (16.6%) $7,191 (61.1%) $11,773

Data source: South Carolina Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 597th of 643 Elementary schoolsRanks 572nd of 644 Elementary schools
 4%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)20.322.7
 2.4%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Williamsburg 01)21.126.2
 5.1%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (South Carolina)49.753.5
 3.8%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)23.722.7
 1%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Williamsburg 01)2723.5
 3.5%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (South Carolina)57.753.6
 4.1%
4th Grade Science (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)11.212.5
 1.3%
   4th Grade Science (Williamsburg 01)14.111.1
 3%
   4th Grade Science (South Carolina)5246.6
 5.4%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)27.736.7
 9%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Williamsburg 01)28.635.1
 6.5%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (South Carolina)51.357.2
 5.9%
4th Grade Mathematics (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)9.128.3
 19.2%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Williamsburg 01)13.724.1
 10.4%
   4th Grade Mathematics (South Carolina)50.547
 3.5%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)26.933.6
 6.7%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Williamsburg 01)27.435.4
 8%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (South Carolina)4155.2
 14.2%
5th Grade Mathematics (Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy)23.430.4
 7%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Williamsburg 01)20.625.4
 4.8%
   5th Grade Mathematics (South Carolina)45.444.6
 0.8%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students435368
 15.4%
African American402332
 17.4%
American Indian21
 50%
Asian35
 66.7%
Hispanic23
 50%
Pacific Islander10
 100%
White1822
 22.2%
Two or More Races75
 28.6%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients100%100%


Schools Near Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy









Frequently Asked Questions about Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy

Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy ranks in the bottom 22.7% of South Carolina elementary schools.

In the 2022-23 school year, 368 students attended Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy.

Students who attend Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy usually go on to attend:

Middle : Kingstree Middle Magnet

Students at Kenneth Gardner Leadership Academy are 90% African American, 6% White, 1% Asian, 1% Two or more races.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the South Carolina Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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