South Dakota · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best Public Schools in South Dakota

Top 50 schools ranked by resource quality score, based on student-teacher ratio, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.

Compiled from official source data by .
70/100
Top score
B
Top grade
57/100
Avg score (top 50)
50
Schools ranked

The ranking in one line

Mckinley Elementary - 06 in Watertown is South Dakota's top-resourced public school, scoring 70/100 on the NCES resource index.

70/100
top score (grade B)
1
schools at the top grade (B)
57/100
average across the top 50
# School GradeScore
1 Mckinley Elementary - 06 Watertown B 70
2 Montrose Elementary - 02 Montrose C+ 62
3 Irene - Wakonda Elementary - 02 Wakonda C+ 61
4 Burke Elementary - 02 Burke C+ 61
5 Timber Lake Elementary - 02 Timber Lake C+ 60
6 Tri-Valley Elementary - 02 Colton C+ 60
7 Kadoka Elementary - 02 Kadoka C+ 60
8 Iroquois Elementary - 04 Iroquois C+ 60
9 Harrisburg North Middle School - 08 Sioux Falls C 59
10 Hanson Elementary - 06 Alexandria C 59
11 Highmore Elementary - 02 Highmore C 59
12 Plankinton Elementary - 02 Plankinton C 59
13 Kimball Elementary - 02 Kimball C 59
14 Buffalo Elementary - 02 Buffalo C 59
15 Custer Jr. High - 05 Custer C 59
16 Brandon Valley Middle School - 02 Brandon C 58
17 All City Elementary - 50 Sioux Falls C 58
18 Wolsey Wessington Elementary - 02 Wolsey C 58
19 Timber Lake High School - 01 Timber Lake C 58
20 Florence High School - 01 Florence C 58
21 Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 Wessington Springs C 57
22 Scotland Elementary - 02 Scotland C 57
23 Dell Rapids Middle School - 03 Dell Rapids C 56
24 Custer Elementary - 02 Custer C 56
25 Platte - Geddes Elementary - 02 Platte C 56
26 Clark Elementary - 02 Clark C 56
27 Faulkton Elementary - 02 Faulkton C 56
28 Dakota Valley Upper Elementary - 04 North Sioux City C 56
29 Ethan Elementary - 02 Ethan C 56
30 Warner Elementary - 02 Warner C 56
31 Clark High School - 01 Clark C 56
32 Mount Vernon Elementary - 02 Mount Vernon C 56
33 Elementary Immersion Center - 43 Sioux Falls C 56
34 Roosevelt Elementary - 08 Watertown C 55
35 Chester Elementary -02 Chester C 55
36 Mobridge Upper Elementary - 04 Mobridge C 55
37 Armour Elementary - 02 Armour C 55
38 Hitchcock-Tulare Elementary - 05 Hitchcock C 55
39 Freeman High School - 01 Freeman C 55
40 Lowell Elementary - 28 Sioux Falls C- 54
41 Laura B. Anderson Elementary - 10 Sioux Falls C- 54
42 Eagle Butte Upper Elementary - 03 Eagle Butte C- 54
43 Mellette Elementary - 07 Watertown C- 54
44 Hill City Elementary - 02 Hill City C- 54
45 Miller Elementary - 02 Miller C- 54
46 Colman Elementary - 03 Colman C- 54
47 Chester High School - 01 Chester C- 54
48 Garretson Middle School - 03 Garretson C- 54
49 Camelot Intermediate - 06 Brookings C- 53
50 Piedmont Valley Elementary - 05 Piedmont C- 53

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best public schools in South Dakota? ▼

The top-rated school in South Dakota is Mckinley Elementary - 06 in Watertown with a quality score of 70/100 (grade B). Rankings are based on student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, gifted programs, and attendance rates from NCES data.

How are school quality scores calculated? ▼

Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES data across 4 metrics: student-teacher ratio (lower is better, national avg ~16:1), counselor availability (ASCA recommends 250:1), gifted program availability, and chronic absenteeism rate (lower is better). This measures school resources, not test scores.

Explore More for South Dakota

All Schools → Largest Schools → Absenteeism Data → Highest Spending → National Ranking →

Methodology

Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 metrics: student-teacher ratio, school counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism rates. Schools must have at least 50 students and data for one or more metrics. This measures resource quality, not test scores. Higher scores indicate smaller class sizes, better counselor access, and lower absenteeism.

Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.