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Wessington Springs Elementary - 02

Q: Is Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 a good school?

Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 ranks 87 th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-6

87^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 300 South Dakota Elementary Schools

Better than 71% of South Dakota elementary schools

Summary

Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 is a public elementary school serving grades PK-6 in Wessington Springs, South Dakota, with 140 students. The school consistently outperforms its Wessington Springs School District 36-2 and the state of South Dakota in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics proficiency, particularly in 3rd grade. However, the school's performance in 5th grade is relatively weaker.

Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 has shown strong performance for female students, Native American students, and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, ranking in the top quartile of South Dakota elementary schools in these subgroups. In contrast, the school's performance for male students and special education students is relatively weaker. The school has also experienced a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 11.6% in 2024-2025 to 20.2% in the most recent school year, significantly higher than the state average.

Compared to nearby schools, Spring Valley Colony Elementary - 05 and Wessington Springs Elementary Cyber School - 94 both perform significantly worse than Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 across various academic metrics. Woonsocket Elementary - 03, located in a different district, performs better than Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 in some areas, such as overall Mathematics proficiency, but lags behind in ELA proficiency.

145

Students ?

10.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,482

Per pupil spending ?

41.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

904 2nd St NE
Wessington Springs, SD 57382

(605) 539-1754

District: Wessington Springs School District 36-2

Students who attend Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 usually attend:

Middle:	Wessington Springs Junior High - 04
High:	Wessington Springs High School - 01

Racial breakdown:

White:

95.2%

Hispanic:

4.1%

American Indian:

0.7%

See top rated South Dakota elementary schools

Compare Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 28th percentile in 2013 → 71st in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the South Dakota average (59% vs 47% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 43 percentile points since 2013

✓Above the South Dakota median (71st percentile)

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school59%

District avg37%

South Dakota avg47%

87^th of 300

South Dakota public elementary schools ?

Top 29%▲ up 52 pts since 2015

From bottom 19% (2015) to top 29% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of South Dakota Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 3Elementary Schools in the Wessington Springs School District 36-2

127^th of 147Wessington Springs School District 36-2 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	69.8	87 of 300	71.0%	★★★★☆
2023	42.7	123 of 204	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.6	110 of 202	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	56.9	93 of 202	54.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	46.3	117 of 206	43.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	52.2	106 of 204	48.0%	★★☆☆☆
2017	35.4	154 of 207	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	33.6	156 of 206	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	29.2	170 of 209	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	44.9	144 of 201	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	28.2	179 of 214	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	40.9	156 of 205	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	32.5	168 of 206	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	30.8	163 of 196	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	39.6	155 of 194	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	39.6	148 of 194	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	66.5	67 of 197	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2005	45.3	142 of 194	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	60.2	93 of 189	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2003	72.3	37 of 187	80.2%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	74.0	46 of 291	84.2%	★★★★☆
2023	40.5	96 of 154	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	73.4	36 of 163	77.9%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	63.0	64 of 237	73.0%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	61.0	106 of 292	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	25.9	130 of 166	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	39.0	99 of 154	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	56.2	69 of 157	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	43.3	95 of 160	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.9	97 of 170	42.9%	★★☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	73.0	18 of 152	88.2%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	27.6	199 of 248	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Dakota percentile	Rating
2025	64.0	101 of 287	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	37.0	129 of 185	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	43.7	115 of 184	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	50.5	97 of 185	47.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	38.1	133 of 191	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	39.6	123 of 186	33.9%	★★☆☆☆

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)88th percentile+17 vs school

Female (2025)84th percentile+13 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)73rd percentile~ school

White (2025)65th percentile-6 vs school

Male (2025)64th percentile-7 vs school

Special Education (2025)20th percentile-51 vs school

By subject vs South Dakota (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts65%+14 vs state

Mathematics56%+13 vs state

Science50%+9 vs state

★

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Schools Near Wessington Springs 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 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
Wessington Springs Elementary - 02	Public	PK, KG-6	904 2nd St NE	Wessington Springs	57382	Jerauld County	Wessington Springs School District 36-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 539-1754	145	13	10.9	41.4%	138 (95.2%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	69.8	87^th of 300 public elementary schools	71.0%					(n/a)	100.0	75.0	33.3	60.0			65.2	76.9	65.0	27.8	60.0			56.1	50.0			$13,482	$1,321	$12,160
Wessington Springs Elementary Cyber School - 94	Public, Virtual	K-6	904 2nd St NE	Wessington Springs	57382	Jerauld County	Wessington Springs School District 36-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	Yes	No	(605) 539-9500	5	0	500.0		5 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	27.5	235^th of 300 public elementary schools	21.7%					(n/a)		25.0	33.3	50.0			33.3		25.0	0.0	50.0			22.2	0.0
Woonsocket Elementary - 03	Public	PK, KG-8	101 N 2nd Ave	Woonsocket	57385	Sanborn County	Woonsocket School District 55-4	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	Yes	(605) 796-4431	181	13	13.9	40.3%	159 (87.8%)	1 (0.6%)	12 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.6%)	50	166^th of 300 public elementary schools	44.7%		32.1	149^th of 201 public elementary schools	25.9%	17	58.3	38.1	34.8	18.2	44.4	35.7	36.4	58.3	42.9	47.8	45.5	61.1	57.1	50.9	47.8	28.6	40.5	$11,048	$1,174	$9,874
Spring Valley Colony Elementary - 05	Public	K-8	23064 365th Ave	Wessington Springs	57382	Jerauld County	Wessington Springs School District 36-2	(n/a)	(n/a)	No	No	(605) 539-9311	16	1	16.0		16 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	45.7	181^st of 300 public elementary schools	39.7%					(n/a)	50.0		50.0		33.3	25.0	40.0	100.0		0.0		0.0	0.0	26.7	0.0	0.0	0.0	$15,068	$381	$14,687

Frequently Asked Questions about Wessington Springs Elementary - 02

What district is Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 in?

Wessington Springs School District 36-2

What schools do graduates of Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 attend?

Students who attend Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 usually go on to attend:

Middle : Wessington Springs Junior High - 04
High : Wessington Springs High School - 01

What is the racial makeup of Wessington Springs Elementary - 02?

Students at Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 are 95% White, 4% Hispanic.

Is Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 a good school?

Wessington Springs Elementary - 02 ranks 87^th of 300 South Dakota elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Wessington Springs Elementary - 02?

In the 2024-25 school year, 145 students attended Wessington Springs Elementary - 02.

Rate Wessington Springs Elementary - 02!

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Schools in Wessington Springs, SD

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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.