James F. Byrnes High

Duncan · SC · Spartanburg 05 · Public


AP rigor: Top 3.7% nationally 15 AP courses

At a glance

Programs & features
  • 15 AP courses offered — Elite
  • Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
  • Gifted & talented program
  • 13 calculus classes · 4 physics · 27 chemistry
Academic signals
  • AP rigor: Top 3.7% of US high schools
  • 4-yr grad rate: 88% in 2019 (Bottom 43% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate)

Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts graduation data, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.

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How James F. Byrnes High compares for families

Among the nation's most academically rigorous high schools.

  • StatewideAP rigor sits in the top 3.7% of US high schools with 15 AP courses.
  • LocallySC sits right at the US average on NAEP 8th-grade math — local school quality will set your kid apart.
  • vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: Riverside High, Boiling Springs High, Mauldin High and 5 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.

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Objective, government-grade data — no school pays us for placement.

Academic rigor

AP + advanced-course offerings

Elite — exceptional AP + advanced course breadth

Top 3.7% of US high schools

50th 90th ↑ this school
Less rigorMore rigorMost rigor
AP courses offered
15
Math ✓ · Science ✓
Students taking AP courses
148
≈6 per 100 students · uptake, not just offerings
Advanced math classes
48
13 calculus · 35 advanced
Lab science classes
31
4 physics · 27 chemistry
Other rigor signals
Dual-enrollment program
Gifted/talented program

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).

SAT / ACT participation

CRDC federal data · 2020-21
SAT/ACT test-takers
0
11th-12th graders who took 1+ college admissions test
Test-taking intensity
0.0
takers per 100 students in grades 9-12

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.

4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts

What % of students graduate on time?

Bottom 43% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate

50th 90th
4-year graduation rate
88%
Single-point estimate
4-year cohort size
646
Students in the 9th-grade entry class tracked over 4 years
Compared against
17,988
US high schools reporting 4-year ACGR

Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.

Teacher workforce · federal CRDC

Teacher experience & reliability

% inexperienced teachers (1st-2nd yr)
10.4%
Typical mix. Watch the trend — high turnover can compound.
% chronic teacher absence (≥10 days/yr)
29.2%
Elevated. Teacher absence directly affects classroom continuity and student outcomes.

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2017-18 — the most recent vintage that publishes per-school teacher quality fields; the 2020-21 sweep had them suppressed). "Inexperienced" = teachers in their first or second year. "Chronic absence" = teachers absent 10+ days/year.

Your state's public flagship

University of South Carolina-Columbia

62%
admit rate
$12,688
in-state tuition/yr · $35,972 out-of-state
1180–1380
SAT 25–75 · ACT 26–32

The in-state tuition gap is the flagship's biggest draw — most in-state families pay far less than the out-of-state sticker. Average net price after aid runs about $22,811/yr. Admission odds depend on your student's GPA and test scores, not which high school they attend.

See the full University of South Carolina-Columbia profile → Estimate your odds with your scores →

Source: IPEDS admissions, tuition & enrollment + College Scorecard net price. Flagship = the state's primary public research university.

Chronic absenteeism

Share of students absent 15+ days
25.4%
Elevated above the national average (~16%). Worth understanding — chronic absence compounds into dropout risk, transfer-out risk, and revenue loss.
Students absent 15+ days
521
Federal definition: absent (excused or unexcused) for at least 15 of ~180 school days — about 10% of the school year.

Why this matters to enrollment: Chronic absence is the most reliable early indicator that a student will leave a school — either by transferring out, dropping out, or matriculating to a charter or private alternative. At this level, today's absentees become next year's enrollment loss and the year-after's revenue loss.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020–2021. Rate = students chronically absent ÷ 2021 total enrollment.

Counselor capacity

Student : Counselor
478:1
Around the US median. Counselors are stretched but functional.
Counselor FTE
5.0
Full-time-equivalent school counselors on staff.
Teacher FTE
127
Full-time-equivalent classroom teachers.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020-2021. Counselor ratio = the school's most recent total enrollment ÷ counselor FTE. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommends a 250:1 maximum; the US national median across schools with on-staff counselors is roughly 430:1.

Enrollment trend & projection

Grade 12 went from 627 in 2021 to 740 in 2024 — over 3 years.
+18.0%

Total enrollment + grade 12, NCES Common Core of Data (2021–2024).

If the recent trend holds…

At its recent rate of +5.2%/year, projecting from 2024's 2,391 students:

2025
2,514
2027
2,781
2029
3,075

An extrapolation of the recent trajectory, not a forecast of the school's plans; ignores one-off shocks.

Revenue upside

At $15,900 per student in district revenue, the 684 students projected to be gained by 2029 represent ≈ $10,875,600/year in additional funding.

District total revenue ÷ enrollment, NCES F-33. Public funding largely follows enrollment, so a shrinking class is a recurring budget hit.

Most similar nearby high schools

The schools most like this one — same type, blended on distance and size — and where their enrollment is heading. These are the schools families here weigh against each other.

SchoolTypeMilesHS enrollmentTrend
Riverside High
Greer
Public 7.5 1,846 +2.0%
Boiling Springs High
Boiling Springs
Public 11.8 2,772 +7.0%
Mauldin High
Mauldin
Public 13.3 2,133 -8.7%
Spartanburg High
Spartanburg
Public 14.4 2,164 +9.8%
J. L. Mann High Academy
Greenville
Public 14.7 2,013 -1.0%
Greer High
Greer
Public 6.8 1,397 +8.8%
Wade Hampton High
Greenville
Public 13.3 1,790 -2.0%
Eastside High
Taylors
Public 10.2 1,490 -4.4%

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