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Mclaughlin, South Dakota - 3 schools
An equity score of 96/100 ranks Mclaughlin School District 15-2 #2 of 121 districts in South Dakota (state average 51). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $20,507 per pupil, Mclaughlin School District 15-2 ranks #6 of 149 South Dakota districts by per-pupil spending (South Dakota districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
442
Total Enrollment
3
Schools
$20,507
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 operates 3 public schools serving 442 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 Corson County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $20,507 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 15 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 13.5% local, 24.8% state, and 61.7% 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 96/100, ranked #2 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.
a 176:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 57.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 0.8% Asian, 0.7% White, 0.4% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Mclaughlin Elementary - 02, with a diversity index of 10.4/100.
Its largest campus is Mclaughlin Elementary - 02, enrolling 203 students (46% of the district's total enrollment).
Mclaughlin Elementary - 02 accounts for 45.8% of all Mclaughlin School District 15-2 student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Mclaughlin School District 15-2 a distant remainder — means Mclaughlin School District 15-2-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.
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 school enrollment varies 2.4× across entities
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 school enrollment ranges from 85 students (lowest) to 203 students (highest), a spread of 118 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.
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 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.
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 student-counselor ratio is 176:1 — 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.
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 chronic absenteeism rate is 57.3% — 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 Mclaughlin School District 15-2'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 Mclaughlin School District 15-2?
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 has 3 schools, including 1 combined, 1 high, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 442 students.
How much does Mclaughlin School District 15-2 spend per student?
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 spends $20,507 per student. The district has an equity score of 96/100, ranking #2 in South Dakota.
What is the demographic composition of Mclaughlin School District 15-2?
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 students are 0.8% Asian, 0.7% White, 0.4% Hispanic or Latino, averaged across 3 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Mclaughlin School District 15-2?
Mclaughlin School District 15-2 has an equity score of 96/100, ranking #2 out of 121 districts in South Dakota.