Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02

Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 is a close-knit primary school in Britton, South Dakota, part of Britton-Hecla School District 45-4. The school instructs 166 students in grades K through 5.

Across the 6 schools in Britton-Hecla School District 45-4 (468 students total), Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

On demographics, Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 logs that nearly all students (89%) are White. Beyond that, the school lists 5% Hispanic, 5% multiracial.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 10.6:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 15.4:1, putting Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 tighter than the state norm the norm. About 23% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is below Marshall County's rate of about 31%.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 53.6%; this one delivers 47.4%.

In the surrounding community, Marshall County reports that median household earnings sit near $78,156, roughly 25% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 2%. In all, Marshall County runs 13 public schools (combined enrollment of about 726 students), of which Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 is one.

Nearest neighbor: Britton-Hecla Middle School - 03, around 0.0 miles off. 2 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 5 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Britton-Hecla Elementary - 02 ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 40.2%.

The campus sits in a small-town setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count contracted 22%: 214 students in 2018 compared to 166 in 2025. Class-load math has narrowed: from 12.9:1 in 2018 to 10.6:1 in 2025.

On this page, posts here usually surface around open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.