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Hill City Elementary - 02

Q: Is Hill City Elementary - 02 a good school?

Hill City Elementary - 02 ranks 124 th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

124^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 300 South Dakota Elementary Schools

Better than 59% of South Dakota elementary schools

Summary

Hill City Elementary - 02 is a public elementary school serving 236 students in grades PK-5 in the town of Hill City, South Dakota, which is part of the Hill City School District 51-2.

Hill City Elementary - 02 is a high-performing school, consistently scoring above the state average in Smarter Balanced Assessments for English Language Arts and Mathematics. In the 2024-2025 school year, the school had 54.96% proficiency in ELA and 45.03% in Math, compared to the state averages of 50.93% and 43.49% respectively. The school's per-student spending has also increased over the past few years, suggesting a commitment to investing in student resources. However, the school faces challenges with rising chronic absenteeism, which increased from 12.6% in 2022-2023 to 20.2% in 2024-2025.

Compared to nearby schools in the Rapid City Area School District 51-4, Hill City Elementary - 02 outperforms them in both ELA and Math proficiency. For example, in 2024-2025, Hill City had 54.96% ELA proficiency compared to 40.52% at Woodrow Wilson Elementary and 41.07% at Grandview Elementary. Within the Hill City School District 51-2, Hill City Elementary - 02 generally performs better than the overall district, with higher proficiency rates in both ELA and Math.

247

Students ?

13.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,981

Per pupil spending ?

31.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

341 Main St
Hill City, SD 57745

(605) 574-3015

District: Hill City School District 51-2

Students who attend Hill City Elementary - 02 usually attend:

Middle:	Hill City Middle School - 04
High:	Hill City High School - 01

Racial breakdown:

White:

73.7%

Hispanic:

15.8%

American Indian:

4.9%

See top rated South Dakota elementary schools

Compare Hill City Elementary - 02 to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 27th percentile in 2015 → 59th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 32 percentile points since 2015

✓Above the South Dakota median (59th percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school50%

District avg51%

South Dakota avg47%

124^th of 300

South Dakota public elementary schools ?

Top 41%▲ up 31 pts since 2015

From bottom 27% (2015) to top 41% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Dakota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

31^st of 147Hill City School District 51-2 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	60.0	124 of 300	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.4	111 of 201	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	42.8	122 of 204	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	42.7	126 of 202	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	48.9	110 of 202	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	68.1	54 of 206	73.8%	★★★★☆
2018	69.3	53 of 204	74.0%	★★★★☆
2017	71.1	48 of 207	76.8%	★★★★☆
2016	44.0	135 of 206	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2015	39.0	152 of 209	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	44.1	148 of 201	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	32.6	174 of 214	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	43.9	150 of 205	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	50.9	128 of 206	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2009	42.5	141 of 196	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	40.7	151 of 194	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	37.6	152 of 194	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	23.4	174 of 197	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	46.5	139 of 194	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	37.7	146 of 189	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	35.4	152 of 187	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	22.5	169 of 176	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	58.9	116 of 291	60.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.9	69 of 165	58.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.8	62 of 154	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	51.7	71 of 150	52.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	44.8	88 of 151	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	64.3	45 of 155	71.0%	★★★★☆
2018	68.5	48 of 163	70.6%	★★★★☆

Foster Care

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	64.3	10 of 61	83.6%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	50.3	65 of 163	60.1%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	55.5	87 of 237	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	34.6	77 of 110	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	45.5	60 of 112	46.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	65.2	31 of 121	74.4%	★★★★☆
2018	66.9	31 of 121	74.4%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	55.9	135 of 292	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	40.1	102 of 161	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.2	122 of 166	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	35.6	105 of 154	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	55.4	72 of 157	54.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	71.2	40 of 160	75.0%	★★★★☆
2018	67.2	54 of 170	68.2%	★★★☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	62.2	22 of 58	62.1%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	65.0	44 of 165	73.3%	★★★★☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	39.0	89 of 152	41.4%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	48.2	110 of 248	55.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	41.4	36 of 72	50.0%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	56.6	132 of 287	54.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	47.4	104 of 184	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	40.8	119 of 185	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.0	101 of 184	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	51.3	96 of 185	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	68.4	45 of 191	76.4%	★★★★☆
2018	68.1	47 of 186	74.7%	★★★★☆

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)

Foster Care (2025)84th percentile+25 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)73rd percentile+15 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)63rd percentile+5 vs school

Military Connected (2025)62nd percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)60th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)60th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)56th percentile-3 vs school

White (2025)54th percentile-5 vs school

Male (2025)54th percentile-5 vs school

Native American (2025)41st percentile-17 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)4th percentile-55 vs school

By subject vs South Dakota (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts55%+4 vs state

Science49%+8 vs state

Mathematics45%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Hill City Elementary - 02

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 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 All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Hill City Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	341 Main St	Hill City	57745	Pennington County	Hill City School District 51-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 574-3015	247	19	13.3	31.6%	182 (73.7%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (15.8%)	2 (0.8%)	12 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (4.9%)	60	124^th of 300 public elementary schools	58.7%		49.4	111^th of 201 public elementary schools	44.8%	13	46.0	52.6	67.5		55.0	46.0	50.0	39.5		45.0	48.8	$12,981	$1,637	$11,344
Custer Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-6	1415 Wildcat Ln	Custer	57730	Custer County	Custer School District 16-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 673-4483	269	26	10.3	34.2%	226 (84.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (4.8%)	76.7	43^rd of 300 public elementary schools	85.7%		63.2	67^th of 201 public elementary schools	66.7%	24	48.5	72.2	73.2	58.1	63.4	51.5	63.9	61.0	62.8	60.1	65.9	$17,165	$950	$16,215
Corral Drive Elementary - 21	Public	K-5	3736 Corral Dr	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-6789	439	22	20.0	6.2%	364 (82.9%)	1 (0.2%)	27 (6.2%)	16 (3.6%)	7 (1.6%)	1 (0.2%)	23 (5.2%)	69.8	88^th of 300 public elementary schools	70.7%		80.3	26^th of 201 public elementary schools	87.1%	62	54.4	52.6	63.4		56.6	53.2	61.5	59.2		57.9	54.9	$10,513	$665	$9,848
Pinedale Elementary - 11	Public	K-5	4901 W Chicago St	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-1805	377	22	16.8	14.1%	301 (79.8%)	3 (0.8%)	24 (6.4%)	6 (1.6%)	12 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (8.2%)	70.6	79^th of 300 public elementary schools	73.7%		78.6	30^th of 201 public elementary schools	85.1%	49	60.0	58.6	50.9		56.9	62.9	62.9	56.4		61.0	49.1	$11,862	$657	$11,205
Meadowbrook Elementary - 10	Public	K-5	3125 W Flormann St	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-1821	478	29	16.5	24.7%	329 (68.8%)	5 (1.0%)	49 (10.3%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (9.4%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (10.5%)	65.5	102^nd of 300 public elementary schools	66.0%		61.9	72^nd of 201 public elementary schools	64.2%	30	46.0	60.3	64.6		57.2	49.4	55.1	52.5		52.3	45.5	$11,023	$704	$10,319
South Canyon Elementary - 15	Public	K-5	218 Nordbye Ln	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-1801	274	19	14.4	30.7%	181 (66.1%)	1 (0.4%)	36 (13.1%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (10.2%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (10.2%)	42.6	191^st of 300 public elementary schools	36.3%		49.1	115^th of 201 public elementary schools	42.8%	76	39.2	50.0	37.7		41.8	47.1	45.2	22.6		37.7	28.3	$11,724	$656	$11,067
Woodrow Wilson Elementary - 17	Public	K-5	827 Franklin St	Rapid City	57701	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 394-1837	328	21	15.8	41.8%	172 (52.4%)	12 (3.7%)	43 (13.1%)	6 (1.8%)	62 (18.9%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (10.1%)	44.6	184^th of 300 public elementary schools	38.7%		35.9	140^th of 201 public elementary schools	30.3%	44	32.0	50.0	38.8		40.5	40.0	46.3	32.7		39.9	34.7	$11,683	$1,137	$10,546
Grandview Elementary - 06	Public	K-5	3301 Grandview Dr	Rapid City	57701	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-1829	431	26	16.3	39.2%	252 (58.5%)	7 (1.6%)	52 (12.1%)	6 (1.4%)	69 (16.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45 (10.4%)	46.1	179^th of 300 public elementary schools	40.3%		47.8	118^th of 201 public elementary schools	41.3%	61	33.0	39.7	54.0		41.1	34.1	45.2	41.3		39.7	41.3	$10,978	$832	$10,146
South Park Elementary - 16	Public	K-5	207 Flormann St	Rapid City	57701	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 394-1833	313	23	13.8	100.0%	118 (37.7%)	4 (1.3%)	33 (10.5%)	2 (0.6%)	109 (34.8%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (15.0%)	27.1	237^th of 300 public elementary schools	21.0%		17.8	178^th of 201 public elementary schools	11.4%	59	42.0	17.3	23.4		27.5	32.0	30.8	19.2		27.5	21.3	$12,731	$1,994	$10,737
Hermosa Elementary - 04	Public	PK, KG-6	11 4th St	Hermosa	57744	Custer County	Custer School District 16-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 255-4345	181	16	11.6	30.9%	164 (90.6%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (4.4%)	2 (1.1%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.8%)	50.6	164^th of 300 public elementary schools	45.3%		24.3	164^th of 201 public elementary schools	18.4%		61.9	54.2	54.2	33.3	51.1	52.4	41.7	25.0	14.3	33.3	45.8	$17,179	$1,221	$15,958

Frequently Asked Questions about Hill City Elementary - 02

What schools do graduates of Hill City Elementary - 02 attend?

Students who attend Hill City Elementary - 02 usually go on to attend:

Middle : Hill City Middle School - 04
High : Hill City High School - 01

How many students attend Hill City Elementary - 02?

In the 2024-25 school year, 247 students attended Hill City Elementary - 02.

What is the racial makeup of Hill City Elementary - 02?

Students at Hill City Elementary - 02 are 74% White, 16% Hispanic, 5% American Indian, 5% Two or more races.

What district is Hill City Elementary - 02 in?

Hill City School District 51-2

Is Hill City Elementary - 02 a good school?

Hill City Elementary - 02 ranks 124^th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Hill City Elementary - 02!

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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.