South Dakota Schools & Education

Public school metrics and education data for all 66 counties.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Avg Graduation Rate

82.4%

Avg Per-Pupil Spending

$7,409

Avg School Score

38/100

Total Schools

720

152 districts

State Overview

About Schools in South Dakota

This summary is generated from the NCES metrics shown on this page and reviewed against the source data by the Data Editor. It is not school advice.

South Dakota Trails National Benchmarks in Spending and Success

South Dakota reports an 82.4% average graduation rate, falling nearly five percentage points below the national average of 87.0%. The state's per-pupil investment of $7,409 is also significantly lower than the national average of $13,000, ranking it among the more frugal states for education funding.

A Wide Performance Gap Across 65 Counties

School performance varies drastically across the state, with school scores spanning from a high of 61.4 to a low of 14.6. While Deuel County achieves a stellar 95.0% graduation rate, Oglala Lakota County struggles with a rate of only 5.0%, highlighting extreme regional disparities in student outcomes.

Evaluating the Return on Education Dollars

Higher spending doesn't always guarantee better results in South Dakota, as Ziebach County spends a state-high $13,420 for a 78.6% graduation rate. In contrast, Sully County achieves a much higher 90.0% graduation rate while spending $3,000 less per student, suggesting more efficient resource allocation.

State Score Context

How South Dakota Counties Are Distributed

65 of 66 counties have enough NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data to receive a county school score. Use this distribution to understand whether the state has a concentrated cluster of high, midrange, or lower measured signals.

Scored county coverage

Counties with complete enough data for the composite score

98%

Higher measured signal

Score range 70-100

Midrange measured signal

Score range 40-69

Lower measured signal

Score range 0-39

Scores are comparative signals from available federal data, not ratings of individual schools.

Best school counties

Best Counties for Public School Research in South Dakota

For a first-pass answer to parent searches about where the best schools are in South Dakota, start with county-level evidence, then open individual school and district records. SchoolsByCounty ranks counties by public education signals, not by private opinions or paid school ratings.

Short answer for South Dakota

Stanley County is the strongest county-level starting point in South Dakota by the current SchoolsByCounty score, with a measured school signal of 74/100. This is a county comparison signal, not a promise that every school in the county is the best fit for every family.

Ranking methodology

65 of 66 counties have enough federal education data for a county school score. The ranking favors counties with stronger available graduation-rate and school-finance signals, then asks parents to verify individual school fit locally. The table below should help parents choose what to compare next; it should not replace attendance-boundary checks, program eligibility, commute, services, or direct district confirmation.

State average per-pupil spending in this dataset: $7,409.

Top measured county school signals

Ranked by the county school score where enough federal data is available.

1Stanley CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $7,88174/100 2Sully CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $10,37370/100 3Jackson CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $9,99469/100 4Dewey CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $9,75668/100 5Lyman CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $9,44467/100 6Harding CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $9,36166/100 7Potter CountyGraduation 90.0% · Spending $8,92364/100

Graduation-focused starting point

Stanley County

95.0%

Stanley County has the strongest reported county graduation-rate signal in South Dakota. Use this as a broad county context, then review individual high-school records.

Funding context to inspect

Ziebach County

$13,420

Ziebach County reports the highest per-pupil spending among counties with available data. Higher spending is context, not a guarantee of student fit.

Counties to research carefully

Lake County

9/100

Lake County has one of the lowest measured county school signals in South Dakota. Review missing data, district context, and individual school records before drawing conclusions.

District research

Compare South Dakota public school districts before narrowing by address

South Dakota has 152 public school district records and 720 school records in the NCES file. Use the district hub to sort large district systems by enrollment, school count, county context, and generated district-guide coverage.

View District Rankings

All South Dakota Counties

County-level school score, graduation rate, and per-pupil spending for South Dakota.
County	School Score	Graduation Rate	Per-Pupil Spending
Stanley County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $7,881	74/100	95.0%	$7,881
Sully County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $10,373	70/100	90.0%	$10,373
Jackson County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $9,994	69/100	90.0%	$9,994
Dewey County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $9,756	68/100	90.0%	$9,756
Lyman County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $9,444	67/100	90.0%	$9,444
Harding County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $9,361	66/100	90.0%	$9,361
Potter County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $8,923	64/100	90.0%	$8,923
Hand County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $8,364	60/100	90.0%	$8,364
Custer County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $7,324	57/100	92.0%	$7,324
Hutchinson County Graduation 89.0% Per pupil $8,290	57/100	89.0%	$8,290
Gregory County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $7,685	54/100	90.0%	$7,685
Miner County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $7,681	54/100	90.0%	$7,681
Grant County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $7,044	53/100	92.0%	$7,044
Ziebach County Graduation 78.6% Per pupil $13,420	53/100	78.6%	$13,420
Faulk County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $7,561	52/100	90.0%	$7,561
Perkins County Graduation 86.7% Per pupil $8,631	52/100	86.7%	$8,631
Kingsbury County Graduation 87.7% Per pupil $7,991	50/100	87.7%	$7,991
Deuel County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $5,967	50/100	95.0%	$5,967
Brookings County Graduation 90.8% Per pupil $6,929	46/100	90.8%	$6,929
Campbell County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $10,084	46/100	75.0%	$10,084
Davison County Graduation 91.6% Per pupil $6,633	45/100	91.6%	$6,633
Corson County Graduation 67.6% Per pupil $10,486	45/100	67.6%	$10,486
Charles Mix County Graduation 85.0% Per pupil $8,066	45/100	85.0%	$8,066
Walworth County Graduation 90.8% Per pupil $6,609	42/100	90.8%	$6,609
Oglala Lakota County Graduation 5.0% Per pupil $9,701	42/100	5.0%	$9,701
Yankton County Graduation 92.7% Per pupil $5,777	42/100	92.7%	$5,777
Edmunds County Graduation 85.0% Per pupil $7,739	41/100	85.0%	$7,739
Bon Homme County Graduation 89.2% Per pupil $6,906	41/100	89.2%	$6,906
McPherson County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $8,902	41/100	75.0%	$8,902
Mellette County Graduation 69.0% Per pupil $9,166	40/100	69.0%	$9,166
Hamlin County Graduation 92.8% Per pupil $5,568	40/100	92.8%	$5,568
Union County Graduation 91.9% Per pupil $6,001	39/100	91.9%	$6,001
Aurora County Graduation 71.0% Per pupil $8,748	39/100	71.0%	$8,748
Day County Graduation 91.2% Per pupil $6,132	38/100	91.2%	$6,132
McCook County Graduation 88.2% Per pupil $6,839	37/100	88.2%	$6,839
Turner County Graduation 89.9% Per pupil $6,465	37/100	89.9%	$6,465
Brown County Graduation 90.9% Per pupil $6,045	36/100	90.9%	$6,045
Hughes County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $6,262	36/100	90.0%	$6,262
Jones County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $8,164	36/100	75.0%	$8,164
Lincoln County Graduation 90.6% Per pupil $5,954	34/100	90.6%	$5,954
Spink County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $7,597	34/100	82.0%	$7,597
Tripp County Graduation 85.4% Per pupil $7,081	33/100	85.4%	$7,081
Lawrence County Graduation 86.2% Per pupil $6,737	30/100	86.2%	$6,737
Douglas County Graduation 84.2% Per pupil $7,012	30/100	84.2%	$7,012
Sanborn County Graduation 84.5% Per pupil $6,953	30/100	84.5%	$6,953
Haakon County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $5,648	29/100	90.0%	$5,648
Todd County Graduation 62.0% Per pupil $7,709	29/100	62.0%	$7,709
Bennett County Graduation 64.0% Per pupil $7,706	29/100	64.0%	$7,706
Hanson County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $5,535	28/100	90.0%	$5,535
Brule County Graduation 61.0% Per pupil $7,391	25/100	61.0%	$7,391
Marshall County Graduation 84.3% Per pupil $6,573	25/100	84.3%	$6,573
Minnehaha County Graduation 87.6% Per pupil $5,848	24/100	87.6%	$5,848
Codington County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,657	20/100	87.0%	$5,657
Hyde County Graduation 69.0% Per pupil $7,034	20/100	69.0%	$7,034
Roberts County Graduation 76.9% Per pupil $6,703	19/100	76.9%	$6,703
Clark County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $6,618	16/100	75.0%	$6,618
Pennington County Graduation 79.3% Per pupil $6,272	15/100	79.3%	$6,272
Beadle County Graduation 78.1% Per pupil $6,315	15/100	78.1%	$6,315
Butte County Graduation 83.4% Per pupil $5,831	15/100	83.4%	$5,831
Jerauld County Graduation 69.0% Per pupil $6,541	14/100	69.0%	$6,541
Meade County Graduation 82.9% Per pupil $5,697	13/100	82.9%	$5,697
Clay County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $5,809	12/100	82.0%	$5,809
Fall River County Graduation 67.1% Per pupil $6,278	11/100	67.1%	$6,278
Moody County Graduation 72.8% Per pupil $6,103	9/100	72.8%	$6,103
Lake County Graduation 68.8% Per pupil $6,096	9/100	68.8%	$6,096
Buffalo County Graduation — Per pupil —	—	—	—

— = data not available for this county.

Compare county school profiles in South Dakota

Use the comparison tool to review school scores, graduation rates, and spending side by side.

Compare Counties

Frequently Asked Questions About South Dakota Schools

Which South Dakota counties have the highest graduation rates?

Deuel County (95.0%), Stanley County (95.0%), and Hamlin County (92.8%) currently lead South Dakota among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.

What is per-pupil spending like in South Dakota?

Across South Dakota counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $7,409. The highest current county values are Ziebach County ($13,420), Corson County ($10,486), and Sully County ($10,373). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

What are the best school counties in South Dakota?

Stanley County, Sully County, Jackson County have the strongest measured county-level school signals in South Dakota, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data. These are county context rankings, not individual school ratings.

Which South Dakota county has the strongest measured school score?

Stanley County has the highest school score in South Dakota with a score of 74/100, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data.

What is the average graduation rate in South Dakota?

The average high school graduation rate across South Dakota counties is 82.4%, based on NCES data.

Which county in South Dakota has the lowest school score?

Lake County has the lowest school score in South Dakota with a score of 9/100. School scores reflect available graduation-rate and per-pupil spending signals.

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

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