Best Public Schools in Sidney, IA

The city of Sidney, Iowa is home to two schools - Sidney Elementary School and Sidney High School, both part of the Sidney Community School District. The elementary school consistently performs well academically, with strong proficiency rates in math and English language arts that exceed state averages. In contrast, the high school has shown significant improvement in recent years, moving up in the state rankings and earning a 4-star rating.

Sidney Elementary School stands out for its academic excellence, with 3-4 star ratings from SchoolDigger and impressive proficiency rates on state assessments. The school's math performance is particularly strong, with over 90% of 4th and 5th graders proficient or better. However, the school also faces a challenge with a relatively high chronic absenteeism rate of 21.6%. Sidney High School, on the other hand, has made remarkable progress, improving its state ranking from 92nd out of 336 high schools in 2022-2023 to 49th out of 338 in 2023-2024, earning a 4-star rating. The high school also boasts an impressive 88.3% four-year graduation rate and strong performance on state assessments, with 11th grade English Language Arts proficiency well above the state average.

While both schools have similar per-student spending and student-teacher ratios, the elementary school serves a higher percentage of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, with 53.73% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, compared to 48.04% at the high school. This suggests that the schools may face different challenges and require tailored approaches to support their respective student populations. Overall, the data analysis highlights the academic strengths of Sidney Elementary School, the improvement trajectory of Sidney High School, and the need to address chronic absenteeism across both schools.