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Best Elementary Schools in Pierre, SD

At a glance

Schools

1,378

Students

Districts

Top rankedBuchanan Elementary - 0350^th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools

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Summary:

The city of Pierre, South Dakota is home to 4 elementary schools, serving students from grades K-6. The schools in this area vary in their academic performance, with Buchanan Elementary - 03 standing out as the top performer, consistently ranking among the top 50 elementary schools in the state. In contrast, Jefferson Elementary - 06 appears to be the weakest performer, scoring below the district and state averages on most test metrics.

The data reveals that Buchanan Elementary - 03 outperforms the district and state averages on standardized test scores in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science, earning a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. Meanwhile, Kennedy Elementary - 08 and Jefferson Elementary - 06 generally score below the district and state averages. The Pierre Indian Learning Center stands out as having a very high percentage of students (97.64%) receiving free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high-need student population, but does not have test score data available.

Overall, the analysis of elementary schools in Pierre, South Dakota highlights the significant performance gap between the top-performing Buchanan Elementary - 03 and the lower-performing Jefferson Elementary - 06. The data also reveals that all 4 schools have relatively high chronic absenteeism rates, which could be an area of concern and focus for improvement. The Pierre School District 32-2 as a whole is ranked 32 out of 147 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating, suggesting it is performing better than the state average, but the performance of the individual elementary schools within the district varies considerably.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Pierre Indian Learning Center	Public	1-8	3001 East Sully Avenue	Pierre	57501	Hughes County	Pierre Indian Learning Center	(n/a)	No	No	Yes	(605) 224-8661	156	8	19.5	98.1%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	156 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Buchanan Elementary - 03	Public	K-5	100 N Buchanan Ave	Pierre	57501	Hughes County	Pierre School District 32-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 773-7310	432	26	16.6	36.6%	270 (62.5%)	4 (0.9%)	23 (5.3%)	11 (2.5%)	60 (13.9%)	0 (0.0%)	64 (14.8%)	75.1	50^th of 300 public elementary schools	83.3%		75.3	38^th of 201 public elementary schools	81.1%	12	42.4	76.1	73.0	63.8	62.1	56.7	57.2	58.7	69.8	$11,597	$863	$10,734
Jefferson Elementary - 06	Public	K-5	900 N Poplar Ave	Pierre	57501	Hughes County	Pierre School District 32-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 773-7320	377	28	13.4	35.5%	240 (63.7%)	2 (0.5%)	24 (6.4%)	2 (0.5%)	64 (17.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (11.9%)	61.2	119^th of 300 public elementary schools	60.3%		57.9	86^th of 201 public elementary schools	57.2%	33	48.4	51.6	60.0	53.0	53.2	42.2	49.1	48.1	50.9	$11,750	$956	$10,794
Kennedy Elementary - 08	Public	K-5	2306 Brookstone Loop	Pierre	57501	Hughes County	Pierre School District 32-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 773-7370	413	26	15.8	41.4%	254 (61.5%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (4.8%)	2 (0.5%)	83 (20.1%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (12.8%)	69.3	90^th of 300 public elementary schools	70.0%		64.9	63^rd of 201 public elementary schools	68.7%	27	45.2	58.1	67.2	57.0	58.1	62.2	56.3	59.0	46.9	$11,670	$916	$10,754

Cities Near Pierre

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Fort Pierre	11.17 mi	3	108^th
Onida	18.75 mi	3	31^st
Highmore	37.1 mi	3	42^nd
Presho	37.64 mi	2	113^th
Stephan	38.51 mi	2

See the top SD South Dakota cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the South Dakota Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.