Laurens, SC — The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) and the South Carolina Oversight Committee (SC EOC) released the 2025-2026 School Report Cards yesterday, October 12, 2026. The report cards contain information on academics, student success, and school environment. The 2025-2026 Laurens County School District 55 (LCSD 55) State Report Card shows continued positive momentum in overall school ratings.
Ten LCSD 55 schools- E.B. Morse Elementary, Ford Elementary, Gray Court-Owings Elementary, Hickory Tavern Elementary, Laurens Elementary, Waterloo Elementary, Gray Court-Owings Middle, Hickory Tavern Middle, Laurens Middle, and Sanders Middle - achieved an overall rating of Average or above for the 2025-2026 reporting period, up three schools from last year. This performance rating meets the criteria to ensure all students meet the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate- having world-class knowledge, world-class skills, and life & career characteristics.
Laurens District 55 High School (LDHS) also showed positive momentum in the report card areas: Academic Achievement, Preparing for Success, Multilingual Progress, College and Career Readiness (CCR), and School Climate. These areas show three years of continuous growth based on the 2023-2024 to 2025-2026 reports. The same data also reflects LDHS's overall rating trending up. LDHS is now a point away from the average rating.
LCSD 55 continues to attribute its success to high-quality instructional materials, consistent, standards-aligned instructional practices, visible learning instruction, an instructional coaching system, aligned systems and frameworks, and an expanded focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM).
LCSD 55 Interim Superintendent Dr. Rhett Harris said, “This report represents a validation of the hard work that has been done by teachers, support staff, principals and our district leaders in teaching and learning. Students are growing because of the commitment to proven instructional methods that prepare teachers for the classroom and equip them with the tools they need to succeed. Our march towards excellence will continue as we endeavor to build upon this positive report card news.”
In August 2026, Laurens County School District 55 (LCSD 55) announced significant gains in the 2025-2026 South Carolina state assessment results. A major celebration was LCSD 55’s recognition as among the top three districts in South Carolina with significant math growth, at + 7.2%. The 2025-2026 State Assessments Report and the 2025-2026 School Report Card strongly reflect Laurens County School District 55’s commitment to its mission, Building a 5-Star District of Excellence.
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