Summary:
The city of Florence, South Dakota is home to a single middle school, Florence Middle School - 03, which serves students in grades 6-8. While the school benefits from a relatively low student-teacher ratio and above-average per-student spending, its academic performance has been declining in recent years, falling well below the state average in key subjects like English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science.
Florence Middle School - 03 has seen its statewide ranking drop from 96th out of 150 South Dakota middle schools in 2022-2023 to 195th out of 246 in 2024-2025. Only 28.57% of its students were proficient or better in ELA in 2024-2025, compared to the state average of 50.93%, and just 9.1% were proficient or better in 8th grade Science, far below the state average of 42.51%. This declining performance suggests the school may be struggling to meet the academic needs of its students, despite the district's Florence School District 14-1 spending more per student than the state average.
Additionally, the school has a high rate of free and reduced-price lunch recipients, at 26.15% in 2023-2024, indicating that a significant portion of the student population may be facing socioeconomic challenges that can impact academic achievement. While the school's small class sizes and resource allocation suggest a focus on supporting students, the data reveals that the school's performance remains well below the state and district averages, underscoring the need for the school to re-evaluate its instructional practices and support systems to better serve its students.
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