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Hill City Middle School - 04

Q: Is Hill City Middle School - 04 a good school?

Hill City Middle School - 04 ranks 102 nd of 246 South Dakota middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

102^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 246 South Dakota Middle Schools

Better than 59% of South Dakota middle schools

Summary

Hill City Middle School - 04 is a public middle school in Hill City, South Dakota, serving 118 students in grades 6-8 and part of the Hill City School District 51-2, which is ranked 31 out of 147 districts in the state and has a 4-star rating.

The school has consistently performed above the state average in Smarter Balanced Assessments for English Language Arts and Mathematics across all grade levels, with proficiency rates of 55.77% in ELA and 34.61% in Math in the 2024-2025 school year, compared to the state averages of 50.93% and 43.49% respectively. The school's performance in Science for 8th grade is also strong, with a proficiency rate of 45.94% in 2024-2025, higher than the state average of 42.51%. The school has particularly strong performance among Native American students, ranking 9th out of 111 South Dakota middle schools in this subgroup, and for multi-racial students, ranking 19th out of 115 South Dakota middle schools.

However, the school's chronic absenteeism rate has fluctuated between 12.5% and 20.8% over the past few years, which is higher than the state average but still lower than some nearby schools, such as Hermosa Middle School - 07 and West Middle School - 37. The school's per-student spending has increased from $9,798 in 2021-2022 to $12,121 in 2023-2024, which is higher than the nearby Hermosa Middle School - 07 ($11,815) and West Middle School - 37 ($11,110), but lower than Custer Junior High - 05 ($12,487).

115

Students ?

21.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,167

Per pupil spending ?

28.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

341 Main St
Hill City, SD 57745

(605) 574-3025

District: Hill City School District 51-2

Students who attend Hill City Middle School - 04 usually attend:

High:

Hill City High School - 01

Feeder schools for Hill City Middle School - 04:

Elementary:

Hill City Elementary - 02

Racial breakdown:

White:

66.1%

Hispanic:

22.6%

Two or more races:

7.0%

See top rated South Dakota middle schools

Compare Hill City Middle School - 04 to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 75th percentile in 2015 → 59th in 2025

Strengths

✓Above the South Dakota median (59th percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 16 percentile points since 2015

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school45%

District avg51%

South Dakota avg47%

102^nd of 246

South Dakota public middle schools ?

Top 41%▼ down 17 pts since 2015

From top 25% (2015) to top 41% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Dakota Middle 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	57.4	102 of 246	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	51.2	76 of 147	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	58.4	58 of 150	61.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	72.5	28 of 143	80.4%	★★★★☆
2021	74.5	19 of 145	86.9%	★★★★☆
2019	69.0	41 of 149	72.5%	★★★★☆
2018	50.4	78 of 147	46.9%	★★☆☆☆
2017	52.8	78 of 146	46.6%	★★☆☆☆
2016	50.9	70 of 147	52.4%	★★★☆☆
2015	67.9	36 of 145	75.2%	★★★★☆
2013	61.3	62 of 145	57.2%	★★★☆☆
2012	59.8	61 of 146	58.2%	★★★☆☆
2011	53.2	82 of 140	41.4%	★★☆☆☆
2010	40.6	110 of 139	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	43.7	102 of 139	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	30.2	121 of 136	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	31.8	117 of 136	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	39.6	113 of 141	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	34.1	114 of 136	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	48.6	92 of 134	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2003	35.6	108 of 133	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	43.1	57 of 117	51.3%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	60.8	77 of 229	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.4	59 of 107	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	65.3	31 of 112	72.3%	★★★★☆
2022	72.6	17 of 102	83.3%	★★★★☆
2021	73.1	17 of 113	85.0%	★★★★☆
2019	54.4	53 of 107	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	51.4	54 of 99	45.5%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	39.3	70 of 117	40.2%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	49.3	90 of 187	51.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	63.3	14 of 65	78.5%	★★★★☆
2023	63.4	18 of 70	74.3%	★★★★☆
2019	66.1	18 of 79	77.2%	★★★★☆
2018	43.1	45 of 71	36.6%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	50.5	115 of 233	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	48.9	60 of 115	47.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.1	55 of 116	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	65.2	32 of 104	69.2%	★★★★☆
2021	71.9	19 of 115	83.5%	★★★★☆
2019	72.5	25 of 110	77.3%	★★★★☆
2018	44.0	72 of 111	35.1%	★★☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	67.5	19 of 115	83.5%	★★★★☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	75.9	9 of 111	91.9%	★★★★★

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	43.7	91 of 181	49.7%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	59.3	95 of 230	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.6	70 of 132	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	58.0	46 of 136	66.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	68.8	32 of 132	75.8%	★★★★☆
2021	73.9	17 of 136	87.5%	★★★★☆
2019	71.3	27 of 136	80.1%	★★★★☆
2018	51.0	60 of 131	54.2%	★★★☆☆

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)

Native American (2025)92nd percentile+33 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)83rd percentile+25 vs school

Female (2025)66th percentile+8 vs school

White (2025)59th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)52nd percentile-7 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)51st percentile-7 vs school

Male (2025)51st percentile-8 vs school

Special Education (2025)50th percentile-9 vs school

Hispanic (2025)40th percentile-18 vs school

By subject vs South Dakota (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts56%+5 vs state

Science46%+3 vs state

Mathematics35%-9 vs state

★

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Schools Near Hill City Middle School - 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 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 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Hill City Middle School - 04	Public	6-8	341 Main St	Hill City	57745	Pennington County	Hill City School District 51-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 574-3025	115	5	21.1	28.7%	76 (66.1%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (22.6%)	3 (2.6%)	2 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (7.0%)	57.4	102^nd of 246 public middle schools	58.5%		51.2	76^th of 147 public middle schools	48.3%	26	64.3	52.0	48.7	55.8	47.6	28.0	24.3	34.6	45.9	$11,167	$316	$10,851
Custer Junior High - 05	Public	7-8	1645 Wildcat Ln	Custer	57730	Custer County	Custer School District 16-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 673-4473	101	8	13.4	27.7%	89 (88.1%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (6.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)	81.2	21^st of 246 public middle schools	91.5%		66.1	36^th of 147 public middle schools	75.5%	15		60.0	72.7	66.0		58.0	61.4	59.6	72.7	$14,156	$445	$13,711
Southwest Middle School - 38	Public	6-8	4501 Park Dr	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-6792	614	38	16.2	12.9%	471 (76.7%)	4 (0.7%)	39 (6.4%)	16 (2.6%)	22 (3.6%)	2 (0.3%)	60 (9.8%)	82.6	14^th of 246 public middle schools	94.3%		89.2	6^th of 147 public middle schools	95.9%	8	64.4	71.4	66.5	67.4	62.9	69.0	66.0	66.0	56.9	$12,004	$628	$11,376
West Middle School - 37	Public	6-8	1003 Soo San Dr	Rapid City	57702	Pennington County	Rapid City Area School District 51-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 394-4033	591	38	15.4	27.2%	421 (71.2%)	6 (1.0%)	55 (9.3%)	1 (0.2%)	40 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	68 (11.5%)	56.3	108^th of 246 public middle schools	56.1%		46.4	86^th of 147 public middle schools	41.5%	22	55.9	40.4	52.9	49.6	43.6	36.3	46.0	41.9	38.0	$12,565	$631	$11,934
Hermosa Middle School - 07	Public	7-8	11 4th St	Hermosa	57744	Custer County	Custer School District 16-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(605) 255-4345	48	5	9.0	31.3%	40 (83.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (6.3%)	2 (4.2%)	2 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (2.1%)	51.1	130^th of 246 public middle schools	47.2%					(n/a)		71.4	38.5	53.2		38.1	26.9	31.9	34.6	$15,464	$445	$15,018

Frequently Asked Questions about Hill City Middle School - 04

What high school do graduates of Hill City Middle School - 04 attend?

Students who attend Hill City Middle School - 04 usually go on to attend Hill City High School - 01

How many students attend Hill City Middle School - 04?

In the 2024-25 school year, 115 students attended Hill City Middle School - 04.

What is the racial makeup of Hill City Middle School - 04?

Students at Hill City Middle School - 04 are 66% White, 23% Hispanic, 7% Two or more races, 3% Asian, 2% American Indian.

Is Hill City Middle School - 04 a good school?

Hill City Middle School - 04 ranks 102^nd of 246 South Dakota middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is Hill City Middle School - 04 in?

Hill City School District 51-2

Rate Hill City Middle School - 04!

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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.