Can I use Pennington County's school score to choose a house?

No. Use the Pennington County school score as a first-pass county screen, then verify the exact district, attendance boundary, transfer rules, and grade pathway for any address you are considering.

Does SchoolsByCounty confirm school attendance boundaries in Pennington County?

No. SchoolsByCounty publishes NCES and Census-backed public-school records. Attendance zones, magnet eligibility, charter lotteries, transportation, and transfer rules must be confirmed with local districts.

How should parents compare public schools in Pennington County?

Start with the 41 listed public schools and 5 district entries, then compare similar grade bands and confirm the address-level rules locally.

Pennington County Schools & Education

Name: Pennington County, South Dakota Education Data
Creator: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

Pennington County, South Dakota

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

School Score

15/100

Percentile-style score

Score Band

Lower Signal

Graduation Rate

79.3%

National avg 87.5%

Education Statistics

Graduation Rate

79.3%

National avg 87.5%

State avg 82.4%

Per-Pupil Spending

$6,272

National avg $13,239

State avg $7,409

School Score

15/100

Percentile-style score

State avg 38/100

State Score Position

#57

of 65 counties by score

Education Data Brief: Pennington County

Measured School Summary

Pennington County faces educational challenges with a school score of 15/100 and a graduation rate of 79.3%, falling below typical benchmarks.

Funding Context

At $6,272 per pupil, Pennington County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.

Neighbor Context

Its school score is 61% below the South Dakota average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 3.1 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 15% lower than the state norm.

School Data Brief

How to read Pennington County before comparing districts

County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.

Local context that changes the interpretation

41 public schools and 5 districts are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.

Overall screen

15/100

Lower measured signal. Ranks #57 of 65 South Dakota counties with school score data.

Completion

79.3%

3.1 pts below the state average

Funding context

$6,272

$1,137 below the state average

School coverage

5 districts represented in the county school list.

Start with measured county context

The county-level signal is lower, so review individual schools and local records before interpreting the score. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.

Check the local school mix

Pennington County has 41 public schools across 5 districts, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.

Verify local rules

Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.

View Public Schools Compare Counties

Parent decision brief

What Pennington County school data means before you move

County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.

Dominant-district county

Rapid City Area School District 51-4 carries most of the listed public-school system, with 27 of 41 schools. Start there, then verify whether your target address sits inside that district slice.

State position

#57

of 65 South Dakota counties with school score data. The county score is 23 points below the state average.

Data confidence

Usable

3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.

K-12 continuity check

These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Elementary to high school visible

12,373 students

Elementary 14Middle 5High 5Other 2

26 listed schools in this county slice.

Douglas School District 51-1

Elementary to high school visible

2,750 students

Elementary 2Middle 1High 1Other 1

5 listed schools in this county slice.

Hill City School District 51-2

Elementary to high school visible

493 students

Elementary 1Middle 1High 1Other 0

3 listed schools in this county slice.

New Underwood School District 51-3

Elementary to high school visible

291 students

Elementary 1Middle 1High 1Other 0

3 listed schools in this county slice.

District reality check

Rapid City Area School District 51-4 is the largest listed district slice, with 27 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.

What the data cannot tell you

NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.

Questions to ask before choosing an address

Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Pennington County?

Do the neighborhoods we like fall inside the same district, or are we comparing different Pennington County district systems?

What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?

Which charter, magnet, or virtual options require a lottery, application window, separate transportation plan, or address eligibility check?

Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?

Data Story

Pennington County Operates Large-Scale Urban and Rural District Mix

Education data brief for Pennington County, South Dakota.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorPublished Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Lead metric:District structure

Pennington County features a complex educational structure with 41 public schools serving 16,190 students, the largest such system among these counties. The landscape includes 23 city schools and 12 rural schools, with no charter schools present. The Rapid City Area School District 51-4 is the dominant provider, managing 27 schools and 12,743 students, including Central High School which enrolls 1,768 students. The county’s graduation rate is 79.3%, falling below the state average of 82.4% and the national average of 87.0%. Per-pupil spending is $6,272, lower than the state average of $7,409 and the national average of $13,000. The composite school score is 15.0, compared to the state average of 38.3. The system also includes two alternative and two special education schools. See the NCES Common Core of Data for school-level records.

Sources

NCES Common Core of Data
U.S. Census Bureau ACS

School Overview

Total Schools

in Pennington County

Reported Enrollment

16,190

41 schools reporting

School Districts

districts

Charter Schools

0% of total

School Level Breakdown

Elementary20

Middle9

High9

Other3

5 School Districts in Pennington County

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Douglas School District 51-1

5 schools

2,750 students

Hill City School District 51-2

3 schools

493 students

New Underwood School District 51-3

3 schools

291 students

Wall School District 51-5

4 schools

283 students

41 Public Schools in Pennington County

Sorted by reported enrollment. Dedicated profile pages are available for 2 high-enrollment schools; every NCES public school remains listed here.

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

Search schools

Level

Sort

Showing 20 of 41 matching schools

Public schools in Pennington County, including district, location, profile availability, grades, type, and enrollment.
School Name	Profile	District	Location	Grades	Type / Flags	Reported Enrollment
Central High School - 41	Profile	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	9–12	High	1,768
Stevens High School - 42	Profile	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	9–12	High	1,686
Patriot Elementary -06	Record	Douglas School District 51-1	Box Elder, 57719Town: Fringe	KG–3	Primary	890
Douglas High School - 03	Record	Douglas School District 51-1	Box Elder, 57719Town: Fringe	9–12	High	749
Douglas Middle School - 01	Record	Douglas School District 51-1	Box Elder, 57719Town: Fringe	6–8	Middle	670
Southwest Middle School - 38	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	6–8	Middle	660
West Middle School - 37	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	6–8	Middle	612
East Middle School - 30	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57703Rural: Fringe	6–8	Middle	600
Valley View Elementary - 13	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57703Rural: Fringe	KG–5	Primary	581
South Middle School - 36	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	6–8	Middle	553
Rapid Valley Elementary - 12	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57703Suburb: Small	PK–5	Primary	514
North Middle School - 35	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	6–8	Middle	513
Meadowbrook Elementary - 10	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	KG–5	Primary	464
Corral Drive Elementary - 21	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	KG–5	Primary	461
General Beadle Elementary - 01	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	PK–5	Primary	444
Vandenberg Elementary - 02	Record	Douglas School District 51-1	Box Elder, 57719Town: Fringe	4–5	Primary	441
Grandview Elementary - 06	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	KG–5	Primary	406
Pinedale Elementary - 11	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57702City: Small	KG–5	Primary	365
Robbinsdale Elementary - 14	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	PK–5	Primary	359
Knollwood Heights Elementary - 08	Record	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	Rapid City, 57701City: Small	KG–5	Primary	357

Central High School - 41

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

Profile9–12High1,768 students

Stevens High School - 42

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

Profile9–12High1,686 students

Patriot Elementary -06

Douglas School District 51-1

Box Elder, 57719 / Town: Fringe

RecordKG–3Primary890 students

Douglas High School - 03

Douglas School District 51-1

Box Elder, 57719 / Town: Fringe

Record9–12High749 students

Douglas Middle School - 01

Douglas School District 51-1

Box Elder, 57719 / Town: Fringe

Record6–8Middle670 students

Southwest Middle School - 38

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

Record6–8Middle660 students

West Middle School - 37

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

Record6–8Middle612 students

East Middle School - 30

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57703 / Rural: Fringe

Record6–8Middle600 students

Valley View Elementary - 13

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57703 / Rural: Fringe

RecordKG–5Primary581 students

South Middle School - 36

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

Record6–8Middle553 students

Rapid Valley Elementary - 12

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57703 / Suburb: Small

RecordPK–5Primary514 students

North Middle School - 35

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

Record6–8Middle513 students

Meadowbrook Elementary - 10

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

RecordKG–5Primary464 students

Corral Drive Elementary - 21

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

RecordKG–5Primary461 students

General Beadle Elementary - 01

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

RecordPK–5Primary444 students

Vandenberg Elementary - 02

Douglas School District 51-1

Box Elder, 57719 / Town: Fringe

Record4–5Primary441 students

Grandview Elementary - 06

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

RecordKG–5Primary406 students

Pinedale Elementary - 11

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57702 / City: Small

RecordKG–5Primary365 students

Robbinsdale Elementary - 14

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

RecordPK–5Primary359 students

Knollwood Heights Elementary - 08

Rapid City Area School District 51-4

Rapid City, 57701 / City: Small

RecordKG–5Primary357 students

Education Funding Detail

Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure

$6,272

State avg $7,409

Compare Nearby Counties

Review Pennington County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.

Open Compare

Browse Public Schools

See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.

View Schools

Frequently Asked Questions

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.

How should I read the school score in Pennington County?

Pennington County has a school score of 15/100, which is a lower measured signal in this county-level index. This score is calculated from available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data, with school-level records shown separately below.

What is the graduation rate in Pennington County?

The high school graduation rate in Pennington County is 79.3%, which is below the national average of 87.5%. This figure is based on NCES district-level data for public high schools in the county.

How much does Pennington County spend per student?

Pennington County spends $6,272 per pupil annually on public education, based on NCES district finance data. Current operating spending per fall enrollment, including instruction, support services, administration, transportation, and operations. It excludes capital outlays and debt service in the SchoolsByCounty methodology.

Counties with Similar School Profile

Beadle County

South Dakota

-0 pts

15/100

School score

Butte County

South Dakota

-0 pts

15/100

School score

Jerauld County

South Dakota

-1 pts

14/100

School score

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Jul 7, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

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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