Best Public Schools in North Sioux City, SD

Summary:

The city of North Sioux City, South Dakota is home to four schools that are part of the Dakota Valley School District 61-8. The district serves students from two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, providing a quality education across all grade levels.

The standout schools in the district are Dakota Valley High School - 01 and Dakota Valley Middle School - 03. Both schools have consistently ranked among the top in the state, earning 4-star ratings from SchoolDigger. Dakota Valley High School - 01 boasts strong academic performance, with students scoring well above the state average in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science on the Smarter Balanced Assessments. Similarly, Dakota Valley Middle School - 03 students have impressive test scores, significantly outperforming the state averages in both English Language Arts and Mathematics.

The other schools in the district, Dakota Valley Elementary - 02 and Dakota Valley Upper Elementary - 04, also demonstrate strong academic performance, with students scoring above the state averages in both English Language Arts and Mathematics. The district as a whole appears to allocate resources evenly, with similar spending per student and student-teacher ratios across all schools. Additionally, the relatively low free/reduced lunch rates suggest the district serves a relatively affluent student population, which may contribute to its overall success.

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 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts 11th 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 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Dakota Valley Elementary - 02	Public	K-3	80 Northshore Dr	North Sioux City	57049	Union County	Dakota Valley School District 61-8	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 422-3840	386	30	12.9	15.8%	284 (73.6%)	6 (1.6%)	44 (11.4%)	16 (4.1%)	10 (2.6%)	5 (1.3%)	21 (5.4%)								(n/a)	48.9								54.5											$12,663	$797	$11,866
Dakota Valley High School - 01	Public	9-12	1150 Northshore Dr	North Sioux City	57049	Union County	Dakota Valley School District 61-8	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 422-3820	431	26	16.4	13.2%	344 (79.8%)	10 (2.3%)	36 (8.4%)	7 (1.6%)	7 (1.6%)	6 (1.4%)	21 (4.9%)	75.5	30^th of 166 public high schools	81.9%		71.5	34^th of 141 public high schools	75.9%	4							76.5								46.1				55.9	$12,756	$583	$12,174
Dakota Valley Middle School - 03	Public	6-8	1150 Northshore Dr	North Sioux City	57049	Union County	Dakota Valley School District 61-8	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 422-3830	345	20	17.0	12.5%	257 (74.5%)	7 (2.0%)	35 (10.1%)	12 (3.5%)	5 (1.4%)	3 (0.9%)	26 (7.5%)	77.9	28^th of 246 public middle schools	88.6%		76.9	25^th of 147 public middle schools	83.0%	3				69.4	73.7	67.6		70.3				53.2	59.3	51.9		54.9		50.0		$11,293	$568	$10,724
Dakota Valley Upper Elementary - 04	Public	4-5	1150 Northshore Dr	North Sioux City	57049	Union County	Dakota Valley School District 61-8	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 422-3830	179	13	13.9	16.2%	127 (70.9%)	4 (2.2%)	27 (15.1%)	4 (2.2%)	6 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (6.1%)	63.7	113^th of 300 public elementary schools	62.3%		65.4	62^nd of 201 public elementary schools	69.2%	51		54.7	61.5					58.3		50.0	39.6					44.5	45.8			$11,721	$568	$11,153

Cities Near North Sioux City

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Elk Point	14.24 mi	3	46^th
Vermillion	27.12 mi	3	60^th
Alcester	34.89 mi	4	72^nd
Beresford	40.34 mi	3	103^rd
Gayville	42.4 mi	3	150^th

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.