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De Smet School District 38-2

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At a glance

57^thof 126 South Dakota districts▼ 2

Better than 54% of South Dakota districts

Elementary 1 Middle 1 High 1Grades PK, KG-12

405 SW 3rd St SW
De Smet, SD 57231·(605) 854-3963·All South Dakota district rankings →

Statewide performance 2018–2026

2026: better than 54.8% of districts

Schools

362

Students

5-star school

Top rankedDe Smet Middle School - 0314^th of 151 South Dakota middle schools

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Biggest riser

De Smet Middle School - 03 up 30 spots statewide this year

Compare South Dakota districts →See the top-ranked South Dakota schools →

Summary:

De Smet School District 38-2 serves 362 students in three schools spanning prekindergarten through grade 12: Laura Ingalls Wilder Elementary (PK–5), De Smet Middle School (6–8), and De Smet High School (9–12). The strongest comparable all-grade academic results are at the middle school: in 2025–2026, 70% of students were proficient in ELA and 63% in math, compared with 54% and 55% at the elementary. The clearest overall finding is that the middle school leads the two schools’ comparable all-grade results.

De Smet Middle School stands out at the top: its ELA and math results were 21 and 19 percentage points above state results, respectively, and SchoolDigger ranked it 14th of 151 middle schools statewide, at the 91st percentile with five stars. Laura Ingalls Wilder Elementary was also above the state in both all-grade subjects, by 5 points in ELA and 11 in math; its fifth graders were especially strong, beating state results by 27 points in ELA, 31 in math, and 33 in science. However, third graders were below state results in ELA and math. De Smet High School is the relative academic concern: grade-11 proficiency was 11 points below state results in ELA, 17 below in math, and 13 below in science. Its completion picture was stronger, with a 97% graduation rate, 9 points above the state.

Results moved in different directions over time: middle-school ELA rose 2 points and math 11 points from the prior year, while elementary ELA fell 6 points and math 8 points. The middle school’s SchoolDigger percentile ranking climbed from the 35th in 2023–2024 to the 91st in 2025–2026; the elementary ranked 72nd of 203, while the high school ranked 119th of 130. School size and reported context vary: enrollment ranges from 91 at the middle school to 176 at the elementary, and student–teacher ratios are 16.3, 14.2, and 10.1 at the middle, elementary, and high schools, respectively. All three reported free/reduced lunch eligible (FRL) for sy 2024–2025, ranging from 25% at the middle school to 29% at the elementary. The high-school year-to-year test comparison is not like-for-like.

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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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SD ACT English Language Arts (2026)	SD ACT Mathematics (2026)	SD ACT Science (2026)	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts (2026)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2026)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Science (2026)		Vaccination (2025-26)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SD ACT English Language Arts 11th Grade	SD ACT Mathematics 11th Grade	SD ACT Science 11th Grade	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 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 All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 8th Grade	Vaccination: Kindergartners immunized against measles (MMR)	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Laura Ingalls Wilder Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	405 Ingalls Ave SW	De Smet	57231	Kingsbury County	De Smet School District 38-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 854-3963	176	12	14.2	29.0%	152 (86.4%)	1 (0.6%)	8 (4.5%)	2 (1.1%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (6.3%)	62.6	72^nd of 203 public elementary schools	64.5%		70.6	77^th of 300 public elementary schools	74.3%	5				25.0	56.0	77.8				54.0	37.5	52.0	74.1				55.3	74.1		84.6%	11.5%	$13,884	$681	$13,203
De Smet High School - 01	Public	9-12	405 3rd St SW	De Smet	57231	Kingsbury County	De Smet School District 38-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 854-3423	95	9	10.1	27.4%	87 (91.6%)	1 (1.1%)	7 (7.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13.9	119^th of 130 public high schools	8.5%		34.7	125^th of 166 public high schools	24.7%	6	37.2	17.1	31.4																			$15,341	$92	$15,249
De Smet Middle School - 03	Public	6-8	405 3rd St SW	De Smet	57231	Kingsbury County	De Smet School District 38-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 854-3423	91	6	16.3	25.3%	82 (90.1%)	2 (2.2%)	5 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.2%)	81.1	14^th of 151 public middle schools	90.7%		72.9	44^th of 246 public middle schools	82.1%	30							40.0	82.1	77.4	69.6				45.0	67.9	71.0	63.3		51.6			$12,660	$68	$12,592

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Lake Preston School District 38-3	9.22 mi	3	21^st
Willow Lake School District 12-3	13.27 mi	7
Iroquois School District 02-3	14.66 mi	3	122^nd
Arlington School District 38-1	20.81 mi	4	28^th
Oldham-Ramona-Rutland School District 39-6	21.32 mi	5	60^th

See the top SD South Dakota districts

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.