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Martin, South Dakota - 3 schools
An equity score of 90/100 ranks Bennett County School District 03-1 #9 of 121 districts in South Dakota (state average 51). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $14,209 per pupil, Bennett County School District 03-1 ranks #44 of 149 South Dakota districts by per-pupil spending (South Dakota districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
490
Total Enrollment
3
Schools
$14,209
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Bennett County School District 03-1 operates 3 public schools serving 490 students, placing it among the smallest districts in South Dakota. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 combined, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Bennett County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $14,209 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 149 South Dakota districts by per-pupil spending. See how South Dakota compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 12.2% local, 23.8% state, and 64.0% federal, an unusually federal-heavy mix, typically a marker of concentrated Title I eligibility or a small district reliant on federal impact-aid programs. The district's equity score is 90/100, ranked #9 of 121 in South Dakota against a state average of 51, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 3 schools offering Advanced Placement (1 AP courses district-wide), a 217:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 71.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 17.4% White, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 1.8% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Bennett County Middle School - 06, with a diversity index of 62.4/100.
Its largest campus is Martin Elementary - 03, enrolling 217 students (49% of the district's total enrollment).
Martin Elementary - 03 accounts for 44.3% of all Bennett County School District 03-1 student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Bennett County School District 03-1-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Bennett County School District 03-1 school enrollment varies 2.2× across entities
Bennett County School District 03-1 school enrollment ranges from 100 students (lowest) to 217 students (highest), a spread of 117 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Bennett County School District 03-1 has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 100.0% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Eligibility here is a supermajority of the population — well past the 75% concentration-grant threshold that unlocks extra funding on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Bennett County School District 03-1 student-counselor ratio is 217:1 — low (typically associated with meeting or exceeding the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommended 250:1 benchmark, which correlates with stronger college and career counseling capacity)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Bennett County School District 03-1 chronic absenteeism rate is 71.9% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Comparisons are relative to Bennett County School District 03-1's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in South Dakota
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Bennett County School District 03-1?
Bennett County School District 03-1 has 3 schools, including 1 combined, 1 high, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 490 students.
How much does Bennett County School District 03-1 spend per student?
Bennett County School District 03-1 spends $14,209 per student. The district has an equity score of 90/100, ranking #9 in South Dakota.
What is the demographic composition of Bennett County School District 03-1?
Bennett County School District 03-1 students are 17.4% White, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 1.8% Asian, 0.3% African American, averaged across 3 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Bennett County School District 03-1?
Bennett County School District 03-1 has an equity score of 90/100, ranking #9 out of 121 districts in South Dakota.