South Central 26-5 operates 1 public schools serving 81 students, placing it among the smaller districts in South Dakota. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 other schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage before they move, rent, or enrol. Aggregated across those campuses, enrollment totals 52 pupils using the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is geographically located in Gregory County County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $19,360 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, which aggregates every revenue and spending line reported under federal accounting standards. The funding mix is 37.2% local, 7.2% state, and 55.7% federal — a breakdown that matters because districts leaning heavily on local revenue are more exposed to property-tax swings, while higher federal shares typically track Title I concentration. Average teacher compensation clocks in at $149,651 per NCES F-33, a signal of the district's ability to recruit and retain staff against neighbouring districts.
a 260:1 student-counselor ratio, above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 15.4% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 61.5% White across the district's schools.
South Central Elementary - 03 accounts for 100.0% of all South Central 26-5 student enrollment
That concentration — well above the 8.4% national median for largest-entity share — means South Central 26-5-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: other. 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.
South Central 26-5 student-counselor ratio is 260:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
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 Variation between sub-units within South Central 26-5 is typically wider than the South Central 26-5-aggregate figure suggests.
South Central 26-5 chronic absenteeism rate is 15.4% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
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 Variation between sub-units within South Central 26-5 is typically wider than the South Central 26-5-aggregate figure suggests.