Enrollment
22
Middle
DISTRICT 28 · STATE 187
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LEOLA SCHOOL DISTRICT 44-2·NCES 464164000919
Leola Jr. High - 03
820 Leola Ave, Leola, SD 57456 · (605) 439-3477 · McPherson County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL22 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 49% of South Dakota public middle schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded South Dakota public middle schools
Student : Teacher
5.6:1
4 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 9.1:1 · STATE 13.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
41%
9 students
DISTRICT 51% · STATE 42%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 5 | 23% |
| Grade 7 | 12 | 55% |
| Grade 8 | 5 | 23% |
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Leola School District 44-2. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
SD Smarter Balanced 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
31.8%
SD avg 50.3% . -8.2pp since 2022
Math
54.6%
SD avg 47.5% . +26.6pp since 2022
What this means: On the SD Smarter Balanced, South Dakota's statewide test, about 32 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 55 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all South Dakota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 47. Reading and writing scores are down about 8 points since 2022, while math scores are up about 27 points.
SD Smarter Balanced results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 31.8% | 54.6% |
| 2023-24 | 50.0% | 42.3% |
| 2022-23 | 40.0% | 28.0% |
% Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SD Smarter Balanced. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
44.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
46.3%
based on SD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 45% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 46% typical for South Dakota schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among South Dakota's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Where Leola Jr. High - 03 ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In South Dakota |
|---|---|---|
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 22 | #151 of 165 |
Ranked against other public middle schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
22
-12 (-35%) vs 2020
-45% since 1990-91, when it was 40
Student : Teacher
5.6:1
was 8.5:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 22 | 3.9 | 5.6:1 | 41% (9) |
| 2023-24 | 27 | 3.3 | 8.2:1 | 41% (11) |
| 2022-23 | 25 | 3.9 | 6.4:1 | 32% (8) |
| 2020-21 | 34 | 4 | 8.5:1 | 56% (19) |
| 2017-18 | 13 | 2.7 | 4.8:1 | 54% (7) |
| 2015-16 | 13 | 2 | 6.5:1 | 38% (5) |
| 2010-11 | 17 | 2 | 8.5:1 | 41% (7) |
| 2000-01 | 31 | 2 | 15.5:1 | 23% (7) |
| 1990-91 | 40 | 1 | 40.0:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Leola Jr. High - 03.
Since 2017-18: students up 69% (13 to 22); teachers up 43% (2.7 to 3.9).
About Leola Jr. High - 03
As a very small middle-grades school, Leola Jr. High - 03 serves students in Leola, South Dakota. Students in grades 6 through 8 make up the school's enrollment of 22 students. That compares with an average of about 187 students for middle schools in South Dakota.
Leola School District 44-2 is the district for Leola Jr. High - 03. It has 6 schools and 170 students.
White students account for 100% of the school's enrollment. Among McPherson County residents, the White share is about 97%.
The student-to-teacher ratio at Leola Jr. High - 03 is 5.6:1, based on 3.9 full-time-equivalent teachers. The average for middle schools in South Dakota, 13.4:1, is higher. Leola Jr. High - 03 counts 41% of students as eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Public schools in McPherson County average a similar 44%.
Leola Jr. High - 03 holds a B- allk12 Grade, placing it above 49% of South Dakota public middle schools.
Predicted from its free or reduced-price lunch share, Leola Jr. High - 03 would score about 46.3%. It scores 44.7%, 1.6 points below that figure.
In the wider McPherson County area, the median household earns about $66,906 a year, about 27% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 7%. Leola Jr. High - 03 shares McPherson County with 9 other public schools.
The closest school to Leola Jr. High - 03 is Leola Alternative School - 07, located less than a tenth of a mile away. The count of other public schools within five miles is 3.
NCES lists the school's locale as Rural: Remote. That means it sits in rural territory far from an urban area.
From 2020-21 to 2024-25, enrollment decreased from 34 to 22, a 35% decline. In 2020-21, the student-to-teacher ratio was 8.5:1; by 2024-25 it was 5.6:1.
You can use this page to share news and ask questions about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
McPherson County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
2,145
Census ACS
Median income
$66,906
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
27%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
10
345 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Leola School District 44-2
- Leola Elementary - 02Elementary · 57 students
- Leola High School - 01High · 38 students
- Long Lake Colony Elementary - 05Elementary · 30 students
- Grassland Colony Elementary - 06Elementary · 12 students
- Leola Alternative School - 07High · 11 students
Other schools in Leola
- Leola Elementary - 02Elementary · 57 students
- Leola High School - 01High · 38 students
- Rosette Colony Elementary - 03Elementary · 31 students
- Deerfield Colony Elementary - 05Elementary · 26 students
- Leola Alternative School - 07High · 11 students
Nearby schools
- Leola Alternative School - 070.0 mi · 11
- Leola High School - 010.0 mi · 38
- Leola Elementary - 020.0 mi · 57
- Grassland Colony Elementary - 068.0 mi · 12
- Deerfield Colony Elementary - 059.3 mi · 26
- Long Lake Colony Elementary - 059.7 mi · 30
Frequently asked questions
About Leola Jr. High - 03How many students attend Leola Jr. High - 03?
Leola Jr. High - 03 enrolls approximately 22 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does Leola Jr. High - 03 serve?
Leola Jr. High - 03 serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Leola Jr. High - 03?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Leola Jr. High - 03 is approximately 5.6:1 (4 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Leola Jr. High - 03?
At Leola Jr. High - 03, the student body is approximately 100% White.
Who oversees Leola Jr. High - 03?
Leola Jr. High - 03 is overseen by Leola School District 44-2 in McPherson County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.