Bennett County School District 03-1

The Bennett County School District 03-1 in South Dakota serves students from three schools: Bennett County Elementary School - 03, Bennett County High School - 01, and Bennett County Middle School - 06. The district appears to be struggling, with all three schools performing below state averages on key metrics like test scores and graduation rates.

The data shows that the elementary and middle schools have significantly lower proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics compared to the state averages. For example, in 2024-2025, the elementary school had only 24.75% of students proficient in ELA, compared to the state average of 50.93%. The high school also struggles with test scores, with 0% of 11th graders proficient in Mathematics in 2024-2025, compared to the state average of 36.27%. Additionally, the high school had a 4-year graduation rate of 86.4% in 2024-2025, which is lower than the state average.

The data also reveals that all three schools have 100% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high-poverty student population. The elementary and middle schools also have high chronic absenteeism rates of 20.2% in 2024-2025. While the district spends more per student at the high school ($20,058) compared to the elementary ($15,555) and middle ($14,249) schools, the student-teacher ratios vary, with the high school having the lowest ratio at 9.9 and the middle school having the highest at 15. Overall, the data suggests that the Bennett County School District 03-1 faces significant challenges in providing a high-quality education to its students, and addressing these issues will be crucial for improving outcomes in the district.