Summary:
ZIP code 73773 has two public high schools, both serving grades 9–12: Pioneer-Pleasant Vale High School enrolls 118 students, and Waukomis High School enrolls 117. The schools’ 2025–2026 results show a clear difference between them, alongside a shared area-wide concern. The most important finding is that science is the weakest subject across the two schools: their average proficiency was 18%, compared with 30% statewide.
Pioneer-Pleasant Vale led the pair in all four subjects, with 48% proficient in English language arts (ELA), 45% in math, 24% in science and 45% in U.S. History. Its lead over Waukomis was 15 percentage points in ELA, 25 in math, 12 in science and 7 in U.S. History; math was the widest divide. Pioneer also exceeded the state in ELA, math and U.S. History, but was 6 points below in science. Waukomis’s strongest subject relative to the state was ELA, where its 33% result was 7 points higher; it was below the state in the other three subjects. Waukomis had the higher 2024–2025 graduation rate, 93% versus Pioneer’s 89%, and both schools’ 2025–2026 chronic absenteeism was far below the state’s 16%.
Recent academic changes point to different strengths: from 2024–2025 to 2025–2026, Pioneer gained 24 points in math and 7 in ELA, while its U.S. History result fell 8 points. Waukomis gained 6 points in U.S. History, but fell 9 in math and 4 in science. SchoolDigger’s statewide ranking improved for both: Pioneer moved from 112th of 463 schools (76th percentile) to 75th of 462 (84th percentile), while Waukomis moved from 223rd (52nd percentile) to 218th (53rd percentile). For context, student-teacher ratios were 13.3 at Pioneer and 12.2 at Waukomis; the free/reduced lunch eligible shares in 2024–2025 were 59% and 62%, respectively. These are contextual observations, not explanations for the differences in outcomes.
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