Enrollment
31
South Dakota · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Garden City, SD
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05
Federal NCES profile for Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 461294001082
👥 S:T ratio 59
🌟 Gifted program 30
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of South Dakota schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most South Dakota schools.
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.3:1
- small classes for South Dakota
- 89.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 31
- students enrolled
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 has class sizes smaller than 76% of South Dakota schools. Computed live against every South Dakota school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Clark School District 12-2 · South Dakota
NCES ID 461294001082 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
3.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.3:1
vs 13.6:1 South Dakota avg
-24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
89.7%
vs 28.8% South Dakota avg
+211% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 compares with South Dakota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Garden City, South Dakota, enrolling 31 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 10.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of South Dakota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 89.7% of students qualify for free meals, 211% above the South Dakota average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 31 puts it in the smaller third of South Dakota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 691 scored South Dakota schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Clark School District 12-2 also operates Clark Elementary - 02 (212 students) and Clark High School - 01 (124 students) alongside Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 compares
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 on the metrics families compare, against South Dakota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs South Dakota | South Dakota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.3:1 | ▼ 24% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 89.7% | ▲ 211% | 28.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 31 | top 81% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.3:1
Leaner classes than 87% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
31
Bigger than 4% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
89.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 211% above the South Dakota average of 28.8%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.3:1
students per teacher
- 24% below state mean
Top 24% in South Dakota - lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Funding equity
$11,435
per pupil, district-wide
- below South Dakota avg of $13,477
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 is less mixed than the South Dakota school average of 27.6.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Clark School District 12-2, which includes Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05.
$11,435
Per student
-15%
vs South Dakota
Avg $13,477
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 64.0%
State 24.9%
Federal 11.0%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark Elementary - 02 | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Clark High School - 01 | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Clark Middle School - 03 | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fordham Colony Elementary - 04 | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Silver Lake Colony - 07 | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 212
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 124
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 72
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
- Enrollment
- 42
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 16
- Students per teacher
- 5.3:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of South Dakota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~31 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05's federal record.
- Compare Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 against another school. Compare schools
- Clark School District 12-2's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05
How many students attend Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05?
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 has 31 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Garden City, SD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05?
The student-teacher ratio at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 is 10.3:1, which is 24% lower than the South Dakota average of 13.6:1 and 34% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05?
89.7% of students at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Dakota average of 28.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05?
The largest demographic group at Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 is White at 100.0% of enrollment, in Garden City, SD.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05?
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 2 factors: student-teacher ratio. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology). Limited indicators were available, so the index reflects partial data.
Is Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 a good school?
Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05 earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of South Dakota schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most South Dakota schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Clark School District 12-2?
Besides Hillcrest Colony Elementary - 05, Clark School District 12-2 also operates Clark Elementary - 02 (212 students), Clark High School - 01 (124 students), and Clark Middle School - 03 (72 students). See the Clark School District 12-2 district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.