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Jefferson Elementary - 09

Q: Is Jefferson Elementary - 09 a good school?

Jefferson Elementary - 09 ranks 130 th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 1-4

130^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 300 South Dakota Elementary Schools

Better than 57% of South Dakota elementary schools

Summary

Jefferson Elementary - 09 is a public elementary school located in Watertown, South Dakota, serving grades PK-4 with a total enrollment of 332 students. The school is part of the Watertown School District 14-4, which is ranked 99 out of 147 school districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Jefferson Elementary - 09 has consistently performed well on Smarter Balanced Assessments, with proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics often exceeding the district and state averages. In the 2023-2024 school year, the school's proficiency rates were 56.94% in ELA and 74.46% in Math, compared to the district's 56.43% in ELA and 50.47% in Math. The school's performance is particularly strong in Mathematics, with 4th-grade students consistently outperforming the district and state. Additionally, Jefferson Elementary - 09 has shown strong performance across different student subgroups, including Female, Male, Hispanic, and White students.

While the school's chronic absenteeism rate has increased in recent years, reaching 20.2% in the 2024-2025 school year, it remains lower than the district's average. Jefferson Elementary - 09 outperforms many of the nearby schools in the Watertown School District, such as McKinley Elementary - 06 and Roosevelt Elementary - 08, in both ELA and Mathematics proficiency. However, Lincoln Elementary - 05, another school in the district, has consistently outperformed Jefferson Elementary - 09 in recent years, particularly in Mathematics.

333

Students ?

14.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,854

Per pupil spending ?

32.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1701 N Maple St
Watertown, SD 57201

(605) 882-6390

District: Watertown School District 14-4

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary - 09 usually attend:

Middle:	Watertown Intermediate School - 13
	Watertown Middle School - 02
High:	Watertown High School - 01

Racial breakdown:

White:

83.5%

American Indian:

5.7%

Two or more races:

5.7%

See top rated South Dakota elementary schools

Compare Jefferson Elementary - 09 to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 87th percentile in 2015 → 57th in 2025

Strengths

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Watertown School District 14-4

✓Above the South Dakota median (57th percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 30 percentile points since 2015

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school52%

District avg52%

South Dakota avg47%

130^th of 300

South Dakota public elementary schools ?

Top 43%▼ down 30 pts since 2015

From top 13% (2015) to top 43% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Dakota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 4Elementary Schools in the Watertown School District 14-4

99^th of 147Watertown School District 14-4 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	59.0	130 of 300	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	77.7	31 of 201	84.6%	★★★★☆
2023	72.6	48 of 204	76.5%	★★★★☆
2022	58.5	80 of 202	60.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	55.9	95 of 202	53.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	67.3	57 of 206	72.3%	★★★★☆
2018	76.5	33 of 204	83.8%	★★★★☆
2017	71.7	45 of 207	78.3%	★★★★☆
2016	78.0	22 of 206	89.3%	★★★★☆
2015	78.4	28 of 209	86.6%	★★★★☆
2013	68.7	54 of 201	73.1%	★★★★☆
2012	76.8	27 of 214	87.4%	★★★★☆
2011	74.0	32 of 205	84.4%	★★★★☆
2010	74.6	38 of 206	81.6%	★★★★☆
2009	76.0	25 of 196	87.2%	★★★★☆
2008	74.5	27 of 194	86.1%	★★★★☆
2007	74.0	27 of 194	86.1%	★★★★☆
2006	78.4	18 of 197	90.9%	★★★★★
2005	79.9	7 of 194	96.4%	★★★★★
2004	64.6	74 of 189	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2003	62.1	69 of 187	63.1%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	45.3	174 of 291	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	62.1	60 of 165	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	67.7	40 of 154	74.0%	★★★★☆
2022	57.7	62 of 150	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.9	61 of 151	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.4	50 of 155	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	66.9	52 of 163	68.1%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	61.4	37 of 163	77.3%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	41.5	151 of 237	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	56.1	41 of 112	63.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	48.8	34 of 80	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	31.0	78 of 106	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.6	85 of 121	29.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	64.7	35 of 121	71.1%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	69.6	67 of 292	77.1%	★★★★☆
2024	86.9	7 of 161	95.7%	★★★★★
2023	76.3	29 of 166	82.5%	★★★★☆
2022	59.8	57 of 154	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.3	79 of 157	49.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	72.0	38 of 160	76.3%	★★★★☆
2018	82.8	13 of 170	92.4%	★★★★★

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	36.5	43 of 58	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	44.6	90 of 165	45.5%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	42.6	136 of 248	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.3	53 of 72	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	78.2	7 of 62	88.7%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	55.1	141 of 287	50.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	73.9	34 of 184	81.5%	★★★★☆
2023	67.3	53 of 185	71.4%	★★★★☆
2022	50.8	90 of 184	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	46.2	106 of 185	42.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	58.7	73 of 191	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	69.3	44 of 186	76.3%	★★★★☆

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)

Hispanic (2025)77th percentile+21 vs school

Male (2025)77th percentile+20 vs school

White (2025)51st percentile-6 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)45th percentile-11 vs school

Special Education (2025)45th percentile-12 vs school

Female (2025)40th percentile-16 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)36th percentile-20 vs school

Military Connected (2025)26th percentile-31 vs school

By subject vs South Dakota (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics55%+12 vs state

English Language Arts49%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Jefferson Elementary - 09

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 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	Smarter Balanced Assessments Science All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Jefferson Elementary - 09	Public	1-4	1701 N Maple St	Watertown	57201	Codington County	Watertown School District 14-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 882-6390	333	23	14.2	32.7%	278 (83.5%)	1 (0.3%)	14 (4.2%)	2 (0.6%)	19 (5.7%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.7%)	59	130^th of 300 public elementary schools	56.7%		77.7	31^st of 201 public elementary schools	84.6%	99	49.4	48.7					49.1	49.4	62.2					55.3				$11,854	$908	$10,947
Mellette Elementary - 07	Public	1-4	619 2nd St NW	Watertown	57201	Codington County	Watertown School District 14-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 882-6385	267	20	13.6	47.6%	192 (71.9%)	3 (1.1%)	20 (7.5%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (6.4%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (13.1%)	45.1	183^rd of 300 public elementary schools	39.0%		39.4	131^st of 201 public elementary schools	34.8%	52	40.9	32.5					36.4	51.5	45.5					48.3				$11,594	$1,010	$10,584
Lincoln Elementary - 05	Public	1-4	1100 13th St NE	Watertown	57201	Codington County	Watertown School District 14-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 882-6340	361	24	14.8	37.1%	272 (75.3%)	1 (0.3%)	50 (13.9%)	5 (1.4%)	13 (3.6%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (5.5%)	53	157^th of 300 public elementary schools	47.7%		84.2	19^th of 201 public elementary schools	90.5%	138	44.0	41.5					42.7	58.2	47.9					53.0				$11,908	$962	$10,946
McKinley Early Childhood Center - 06	Public	PK-K	5 12th St SW	Watertown	57201	Codington County	Watertown School District 14-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 882-6350	296	22	13.7	38.2%	229 (77.4%)	2 (0.7%)	32 (10.8%)	5 (1.7%)	10 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (6.1%)								(n/a)
Waverly-South Shore Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	319 Mary Pl	Waverly	57201	Codington County	Waverly School District 14-5	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 886-9174	128	11	11.4	50.8%	105 (82.0%)	1 (0.8%)	4 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (7.8%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (6.3%)	34.2	217^th of 300 public elementary schools	27.7%		26.2	162^nd of 201 public elementary schools	19.4%	55	23.5	31.6	34.6				30.7	29.4	31.6	26.9				29.0	38.5			$15,192	$484	$14,708
Florence Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	515 Main Ave	Florence	57235	Codington County	Florence School District 14-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 758-2412	179	11	16.1	32.4%	172 (96.1%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54.3	147^th of 300 public elementary schools	51.0%		27.8	157^th of 201 public elementary schools	21.9%	10	46.2	48.2	50.0				48.1	61.5	44.5	37.5				48.1	33.3			$12,574	$716	$11,858
Castlewood Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	310 E Harry St	Castlewood	57223	Hamlin County	Castlewood School District 28-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 793-2497	140	11	13.0	26.4%	131 (93.6%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (6.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	80.9	28^th of 300 public elementary schools	90.7%		55.4	95^th of 201 public elementary schools	52.7%	67	66.7	70.6	64.0				66.7	76.2	70.6	72.0				73.0	48.0			$13,151	$664	$12,487
Claremont Colony Elementary - 04	Public	K-8	46271 184th St	Castlewood	57223	Hamlin County	Castlewood School District 28-1	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 793-2497	17	1	17.0		17 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4.6	300^th of 300 public elementary schools	0.0%					(n/a)	0.0	0.0		0.0	100.0	0.0	10.0	0.0	0.0		0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0		0.0
Henry Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-5	111 N Cedar	Henry	57243	Codington County	Henry School District 14-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 532-5364	93	10	9.5	49.5%	87 (93.5%)	5 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	33.5	220^th of 300 public elementary schools	26.7%		26.9	158^th of 201 public elementary schools	21.4%	62	35.3	40.0	28.6				34.8	41.2	40.0	0.0				28.3	28.6			$14,113	$611	$13,502
Sunrise Colony - 15	Public	K-8	45425 152nd St	Summit	57266	Grant County	Watertown School District 14-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(605) 882-6340	20	2	10.0		20 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10.3	277^th of 300 public elementary schools	7.7%					(n/a)	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0		50.0	10.0	0.0	33.3	0.0	0.0		0.0	10.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

Frequently Asked Questions about Jefferson Elementary - 09

How many students attend Jefferson Elementary - 09?

In the 2024-25 school year, 333 students attended Jefferson Elementary - 09.

What schools do graduates of Jefferson Elementary - 09 attend?

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary - 09 usually go on to attend:

Middle : Watertown Intermediate School - 13
Middle : Watertown Middle School - 02
High : Watertown High School - 01

Is Jefferson Elementary - 09 a good school?

Jefferson Elementary - 09 ranks 130^th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Jefferson Elementary - 09?

Students at Jefferson Elementary - 09 are 83% White, 6% American Indian, 6% Two or more races, 4% Hispanic.

What district is Jefferson Elementary - 09 in?

Watertown School District 14-4

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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.