Total enrollment
25,060
+622 (+3%) vs SY 2020-21
45 schools in Sioux Falls School District 49-5
South Dakota · 25,060 students · 2 cities
In South Dakota's Sioux Falls School District 49-5, public K-12 schools total 45 and serve approximately 25,060 students (an average of 557 per school).
4-year change in Sioux Falls School District 49-5
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25School count
44
+5 (+13%) vs SY 2020-21
Source: NCES Common Core of Data, enrollment-weighted demographic averages
How Sioux Falls School District 49-5 ranks
Among districts| Measure | This district | In South Dakota | In the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 43.6% | #20 of 23 | N/A |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 25,060 | #1 of 50 | #288 of 9,234 |
| Number of schools ranked most first | 44 | #1 of 50 | N/A |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.0:1 | #34 of 50 | #5,521 of 9,044 |
| Free or reduced-price lunch share ranked highest first | 51.2% | #7 of 50 | #3,998 of 8,164 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 64.5% | #2 of 22 | #1,056 of 6,853 |
Districts need at least 2 schools and 500 students to be ranked. Test proficiency is ranked within the state only, since each state gives a different test. Each rank links to the full list.
Inside Sioux Falls School District 49-5
State test results across the district's 29 scored schools run from Challenge Center - 51 at 95.0% proficient to Hawthorne Elementary - 56 at 16.9%, a gap of 78.2 points. That is the widest gap among 15 South Dakota districts with four or more scored schools.
Since 2017-18, the 38 district schools that reported both years went from 24,366 to 22,180 students (down 9%) and from 1,548 to 1,468 full-time teachers (down 5%), as of 2024-25.
Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across each school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25; schools with fewer than 100 students and schools serving specialized populations are left out. Staffing figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data and count only schools that reported students and teachers in both years.
About Sioux Falls School District 49-5
Sioux Falls School District 49-5 runs 45 public schools across South Dakota, collectively teacheing roughly 25,060 students.
On the level-by-level breakdown, Sioux Falls School District 49-5 covers 27 elementary, 7 middle, 8 high schools, and 3 combined or other.
On a per-school basis, Sioux Falls School District 49-5 runs about 557 students per school, 168% higher than the state mean of roughly 208.
Five-year track record. Combined enrollment now sits at 25,060 students, grew 3% from the 24,438 reported in SY 2020-21. Over that span, Sioux Falls School District 49-5 added 5 schools, going from 39 to 44.
In the discussion threads here, the community for Sioux Falls School District 49-5 discusses comparison threads between local schools and program reviews. Parents, students, and educators in the area can post or comment.