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Explorer Elementary - 04

Q: Is Explorer Elementary - 04 a good school?

Explorer Elementary - 04 ranks 91 st of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

91^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 300 South Dakota Elementary Schools

Better than 70% of South Dakota elementary schools

Summary

Explorer Elementary - 04 is a public elementary school located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, serving 342 students in grades K-5. It is part of the Harrisburg School District 41-2, which is ranked 39 out of 147 school districts in the state and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Explorer Elementary - 04 consistently performs above the state average in Smarter Balanced Assessments for English Language Arts and Mathematics across all grade levels. In the 2024-2025 school year, 58.55% of students were proficient or better in ELA, and 56.57% were proficient or better in Mathematics, compared to the state averages of 50.93% and 43.49%, respectively. The school's performance in ELA and Mathematics is also higher than the Harrisburg School District average. Explorer Elementary - 04 has a strong performance in special education, ranking 16th out of 248 South Dakota elementary schools in this subgroup for the 2024-2025 school year.

While Explorer Elementary - 04 is a strong-performing school, it faces some challenges. The school has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, from 3.0% in 2020-2021 to 20.2% in 2024-2025, which is a concerning trend. Additionally, the school's performance varies across different student subgroups, with White and English Language Learner students performing particularly well, while Native American and Low Socioeconomic Status students lag behind. Nearby schools, such as Adventure Elementary - 10 in the Harrisburg School District and RF Pettigrew Elementary - 17 in the Sioux Falls School District, have also shown strong academic performance, with the Challenge Center - 51 in Sioux Falls ranking among the top 2 elementary schools in the state.

338

Students ?

13.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$10,968

Per pupil spending ?

27.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

4010 W 82nd St
Sioux Falls, SD 57108

(605) 743-2567

District: Harrisburg School District 41-2

Students who attend Explorer Elementary - 04 usually attend:

Middle:	Harrisburg North Middle School - 08
High:	Harrisburg High School - 01

Racial breakdown:

White:

66.0%

African American:

9.8%

Two or more races:

8.6%

See top rated South Dakota elementary schools

Compare Explorer Elementary - 04 to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 73rd percentile in 2015 → 70th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the South Dakota average (56% vs 47% meeting standards)

✓Above the South Dakota median (70th percentile)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school56%

District avg55%

South Dakota avg47%

91^st of 300

South Dakota public elementary schools ?

Top 30%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

From top 27% (2015) to top 30% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Dakota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 7Elementary Schools in the Harrisburg School District 41-2

39^th of 147Harrisburg School District 41-2 among South Dakota districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	68.5	91 of 300	69.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	56.3	93 of 201	53.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	62.7	78 of 204	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.9	65 of 202	67.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	66.1	64 of 202	68.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.9	62 of 206	69.9%	★★★★☆
2018	71.4	46 of 204	77.5%	★★★★☆
2017	61.7	80 of 207	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2016	73.0	39 of 206	81.1%	★★★★☆
2015	68.4	57 of 209	72.7%	★★★★☆
2013	55.9	106 of 201	47.3%	★★☆☆☆
2012	66.1	73 of 214	65.9%	★★★☆☆
2011	60.1	97 of 205	52.7%	★★★☆☆
2010	66.6	70 of 206	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2009	55.9	107 of 196	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2008	69.6	56 of 194	71.1%	★★★★☆
2007	60.5	90 of 194	53.6%	★★★☆☆
2006	67.1	66 of 197	66.5%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	43.2	44 of 81	45.7%	★★☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	47.3	32 of 58	44.8%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	60.3	41 of 176	76.7%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	68.3	75 of 291	74.2%	★★★★☆
2024	63.7	55 of 165	66.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	64.6	46 of 154	70.1%	★★★★☆
2022	71.4	36 of 150	76.0%	★★★★☆
2021	65.5	49 of 151	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.7	49 of 155	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	67.2	50 of 163	69.3%	★★★★☆

Foster Care

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	69.6	6 of 61	90.2%	★★★★★

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	52.2	60 of 163	63.2%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	52.5	100 of 237	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	36.8	71 of 110	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	53.8	44 of 112	60.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	81.5	9 of 80	88.8%	★★★★☆
2021	55.2	40 of 106	62.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	64.8	32 of 121	73.6%	★★★★☆
2018	63.0	39 of 121	67.8%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	63.6	90 of 292	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	48.9	83 of 161	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	59.7	65 of 166	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	54.2	73 of 154	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	66.3	48 of 157	69.4%	★★★★☆
2019	71.2	39 of 160	75.6%	★★★★☆
2018	74.0	35 of 170	79.4%	★★★★☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	58.1	60 of 165	63.6%	★★★☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	35.9	99 of 152	34.9%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	77.8	16 of 248	93.5%	★★★★★
2024	63.3	19 of 72	73.6%	★★★★☆
2018	42.9	37 of 62	40.3%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	73.4	46 of 287	84.0%	★★★★☆
2024	68.2	46 of 184	75.0%	★★★★☆
2023	68.0	51 of 185	72.4%	★★★★☆
2022	67.4	53 of 184	71.2%	★★★★☆
2021	63.4	60 of 185	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.0	52 of 191	72.8%	★★★★☆
2018	74.4	31 of 186	83.3%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Special Education (2025)94th percentile+24 vs school

Foster Care (2025)90th percentile+20 vs school

White (2025)84th percentile+14 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)77th percentile+7 vs school

Female (2025)74th percentile+5 vs school

Male (2025)69th percentile~ school

Multi-racial (2025)64th percentile-6 vs school

Hispanic (2025)63rd percentile-6 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)58th percentile-12 vs school

African American (2025)46th percentile-24 vs school

Asian (2025)45th percentile-25 vs school

Native American (2025)35th percentile-35 vs school

By subject vs South Dakota (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts59%+8 vs state

Mathematics57%+13 vs state

Science45%+4 vs state

★

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Schools Near Explorer Elementary - 04

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 All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Explorer Elementary - 04	Public	K-5	4010 W 82nd St	Sioux Falls	57108	Lincoln County	Harrisburg School District 41-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 743-2567	338	25	13.2	27.8%	223 (66.0%)	33 (9.8%)	28 (8.3%)	11 (3.3%)	14 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (8.6%)	68.5	91^st of 300 public elementary schools	69.7%		56.3	93^rd of 201 public elementary schools	53.7%	2	58.0	56.5	60.7	58.6	70.0	43.5	55.4	56.6	44.6	$10,968	$251	$10,716
Endeavor Elementary - 07	Public	PK, KG-5	2401 W 95th St	Sioux Falls	57108	Lincoln County	Harrisburg School District 41-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 743-2567	358	27	13.3	12.6%	280 (78.2%)	18 (5.0%)	17 (4.7%)	16 (4.5%)	3 (0.8%)	1 (0.3%)	23 (6.4%)	71.9	71^st of 300 public elementary schools	76.3%		70.7	47^th of 201 public elementary schools	76.6%	24	62.1	54.0	48.4	54.7	75.9	70.0	53.1	65.7	50.0	$11,403	$455	$10,948
Journey Elementary - 05	Public	K-5	6801 S Grange Ave	Sioux Falls	57108	Lincoln County	Harrisburg School District 41-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 743-2567	340	26	13.1	16.5%	270 (79.4%)	19 (5.6%)	17 (5.0%)	11 (3.2%)	8 (2.4%)	1 (0.3%)	14 (4.1%)	79.5	33^rd of 300 public elementary schools	89.0%		76.1	35^th of 201 public elementary schools	82.6%	2	48.0	74.2	68.9	64.7	70.0	72.6	60.7	67.6	57.4	$11,449	$438	$11,011
John F. Kennedy Elementary - 57	Public	K-5	4501 S Holbrook Ave	Sioux Falls	57106	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 362-2784	661	43	15.4	37.5%	481 (72.8%)	45 (6.8%)	48 (7.3%)	10 (1.5%)	17 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	60 (9.1%)	72.9	62^nd of 300 public elementary schools	79.3%		73.4	44^th of 201 public elementary schools	78.1%	18	51.4	69.2	66.3	61.9	57.0	68.1	54.5	59.5	51.5	$10,658	$608	$10,049
Adventure Elementary - 10	Public	K-5	27220 472nd Ave	Sioux Falls	57108	Lincoln County	Harrisburg School District 41-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 432-2567	440	27	16.4	9.8%	387 (88.0%)	4 (0.9%)	16 (3.6%)	12 (2.7%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	18 (4.1%)	91.7	7^th of 300 public elementary schools	97.7%		96.6	4^th of 201 public elementary schools	98.0%	3	84.8	81.7	75.3	80.6	87.0	82.8	74.2	81.3	69.9	$13,184	$238	$12,946
RF Pettigrew Elementary - 17	Public	PK, KG-5	7900 W 53rd St	Sioux Falls	57106	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 362-3560	846	49	17.4	37.8%	542 (64.1%)	78 (9.2%)	99 (11.7%)	20 (2.4%)	24 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	83 (9.8%)	64.8	106^th of 300 public elementary schools	64.7%		67	57^th of 201 public elementary schools	71.6%	49	53.0	56.3	50.4	53.0	62.4	65.2	46.9	57.3	41.3	$11,066	$673	$10,393
Oscar Howe Elementary - 58	Public	K-5	2801 Valley View Rd	Sioux Falls	57106	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 362-2752	608	35	17.1	52.0%	366 (60.2%)	64 (10.5%)	100 (16.4%)	7 (1.2%)	34 (5.6%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (6.1%)	51.5	161^st of 300 public elementary schools	46.3%		35.4	142^nd of 201 public elementary schools	29.4%	19	43.1	53.9	37.8	45.5	47.1	54.9	32.9	45.8	36.6	$11,050	$600	$10,450
Laura Wilder Elementary - 31	Public	K-5	2300 S Lyndale Ave	Sioux Falls	57105	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 367-4570	447	30	14.8	66.7%	226 (50.6%)	60 (13.4%)	65 (14.5%)	4 (0.9%)	40 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (11.6%)	36.3	211^th of 300 public elementary schools	29.7%		18.7	175^th of 201 public elementary schools	12.9%	36	41.7	40.0	23.9	35.1	56.9	34.5	16.4	36.6	20.9	$10,790	$621	$10,170
Robert Frost Elementary - 18	Public	PK, KG-5	3101 S 4th Ave	Sioux Falls	57105	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 367-6170	447	26	16.8	42.1%	317 (70.9%)	37 (8.3%)	33 (7.4%)	2 (0.4%)	21 (4.7%)	1 (0.2%)	36 (8.1%)	57.4	139^th of 300 public elementary schools	53.7%		53.8	99^th of 201 public elementary schools	50.7%	40	41.9	58.9	48.4	49.0	46.0	41.1	54.8	47.4	48.4	$11,331	$597	$10,735
Challenge Center - 51	Public	2-5	3101 S 4th Ave	Sioux Falls	57105	Minnehaha County	Sioux Falls School District 49-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 367-6170	165	11	14.8	15.8%	136 (82.4%)	8 (4.8%)	9 (5.5%)	3 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (5.5%)	97.8	2^nd of 300 public elementary schools	99.3%		99.2	1^st of 201 public elementary schools	99.5%	1	100.0	100.0	94.3	97.9	100.0	98.1	88.7	95.2	90.6	$6,651	$560	$6,091

Frequently Asked Questions about Explorer Elementary - 04

How many students attend Explorer Elementary - 04?

In the 2024-25 school year, 338 students attended Explorer Elementary - 04.

What schools do graduates of Explorer Elementary - 04 attend?

Students who attend Explorer Elementary - 04 usually go on to attend:

Middle : Harrisburg North Middle School - 08
High : Harrisburg High School - 01

Is Explorer Elementary - 04 a good school?

Explorer Elementary - 04 ranks 91^st of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is Explorer Elementary - 04 in?

Harrisburg School District 41-2

What is the racial makeup of Explorer Elementary - 04?

Students at Explorer Elementary - 04 are 66% White, 10% African American, 9% Two or more races, 8% Hispanic, 4% American Indian, 3% Asian.

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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.