Enrollment
225
Elementary
DISTRICT 127 · STATE 204
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MCCOOK CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT 43-7·NCES 460102600404
McCook Central Elementary - 02
200 E Essex, Salem, SD 57058 · (605) 425-2264 · McCook County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY43-RURALREGULAR SCHOOL225 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 28% of South Dakota public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- DBeats 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 elementary schools
Student : Teacher
12.6:1
18 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.9:1 · STATE 15.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
25%
57 students
DISTRICT 23% · STATE 42%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 39 | 17% |
| Kindergarten | 40 | 18% |
| Grade 1 | 26 | 12% |
| Grade 2 | 23 | 10% |
| Grade 3 | 32 | 14% |
| Grade 4 | 35 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 30 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (40) is 33% larger than its 5th grade class (30).
Student demographics
15%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 14% · STATE 53% · US 70%
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
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within McCook Central School District 43-7. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
QUIET COMMUNITY
Be the first to start a discussion at McCook Central Elementary - 02.
START A DISCUSSIONTest scores
SD Smarter Balanced 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
49.0%
SD avg 50.3% . +1.2pp since 2022
Math
42.7%
SD avg 47.5% . -5.1pp since 2022
What this means: On the SD Smarter Balanced, South Dakota's statewide test, about 49 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 43 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all South Dakota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 47. Reading and writing scores are up about 1 points since 2022, while math scores are down about 5 points.
SD Smarter Balanced results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 49.0% | 42.7% |
| 2023-24 | 50.0% | 47.7% |
| 2022-23 | 47.8% | 47.8% |
% 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
41.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
52.6%
based on SD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-10.8pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 42% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 53% 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 →
Schools most like McCook Central Elementary - 02
McCook Central Elementary - 02's state test result (41.9% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| McCook Central Elementary - 02 this school | 225 | 25.3% | 41.9% |
| Garretson Elementary - 02 Garretson | 246 | 24.8% | 40.7% |
| Faulkton Elementary - 02 Faulkton | 185 | 26.5% | 76.6% |
| Platte - Geddes Elementary - 02 Platte | 230 | 23.5% | 62.8% |
| Miller Elementary - 02 Miller | 231 | 22.5% | 65.0% |
| Clear Lake Elementary - 02 Clear Lake | 270 | 21.9% | 45.9% |
Matched among South Dakota elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where McCook Central Elementary - 02 ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In South Dakota | In McCook County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 41.9% | #130 of 193 | N/A |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 42.7% | #134 of 199 ▼ 20 | N/A |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #108 of 202 ▼ 1 | N/A |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 225 | #125 of 331 | #1 of 6 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.6:1 | #31 of 131 | N/A |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 15.0% | #119 of 131 | N/A |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 25.3% | #148 of 209 | N/A |
Ranked against other public elementary 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
225
+52 (+30%) vs 2020
+40% since 2000-01, when it was 161
Student : Teacher
12.6:1
was 13.3:1
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 | 225 | 17.9 | 12.6:1 | 25% (57) |
| 2023-24 | 208 | 15.7 | 13.2:1 | 25% (53) |
| 2022-23 | 184 | 12.7 | 14.5:1 | 21% (39) |
| 2020-21 | 173 | 13 | 13.3:1 | 29% (51) |
| 2017-18 | 176 | 14.5 | 12.2:1 | 24% (43) |
| 2015-16 | 184 | 13 | 14.2:1 | 33% (61) |
| 2010-11 | 149 | 13 | 11.5:1 | 40% (59) |
| 2000-01 | 161 | 11 | 14.6:1 | 34% (55) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for McCook Central Elementary - 02.
Since 2017-18: students up 28% (176 to 225); teachers up 24% (14.5 to 17.9).
About McCook Central Elementary - 02
McCook Central Elementary - 02 is a medium-sized elementary school in McCook Central School District 43-7, located in Salem, South Dakota. It enrolled 225 students in pre-K through 5 for the 2024-25 school year.
The district, McCook Central School District 43-7, operates 4 schools serving 455 students.
Federal enrollment data show McCook Central Elementary - 02 is 92% White. Enrollment also includes 4% multiracial and 4% Hispanic. County-wide, about 93% of residents are White. The school's diversity index is 15%, meaning two students picked at random have a 15% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Teachers at the school number 17.9 full-time equivalents, and the ratio is 12.6:1. This ratio sits 2.8 below the 15.4:1 average for elementary schools in South Dakota. Roughly 25% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. For comparison, public schools in McCook County average 23%.
allk12 grades McCook Central Elementary - 02 a C. The grade compares the school only with South Dakota public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
After adjusting for student poverty, McCook Central Elementary - 02 lands between the top and bottom 10% of South Dakota schools. Its average proficiency rate on state tests is 41.9%; the prediction is 52.6%.
In the county around the school, McCook County, the median household income is $83,852, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 30% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 6%. McCook County is home to 12 public schools and about 1,172 public school students.
The nearest public school is McCook Central High School - 01, at less than a tenth of a mile. Inside a five-mile radius, there are 3 other public schools. The nearest schools with test data average 48.6%, higher than McCook Central Elementary - 02's 41.9%.
By NCES locale, the school is Rural: Remote, or in rural territory far from an urban area.
Compared with 2020-21, the school had 52 more students in 2024-25.
Topics for discussion here include school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
McCook County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
5,751
Census ACS
Median income
$83,852
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
30%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
12
1,172 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in McCook Central School District 43-7
- McCook Central High School - 01High · 118 students
- McCook Central Middle School - 03Middle · 84 students
- Goldenview Colony School - 04Elementary · 28 students
Other schools in Salem
- McCook Central High School - 01High · 118 students
- McCook Central Middle School - 03Middle · 84 students
- Goldenview Colony School - 04Elementary · 28 students
Nearby schools
- McCook Central High School - 010.0 mi · 118
- McCook Central Middle School - 030.0 mi · 84
- Goldenview Colony School - 043.9 mi · 28
- Canistota High School - 0110.1 mi · 99
- Canistota Elementary - 0210.1 mi · 141
- Canistota Middle School - 0310.1 mi · 68
Frequently asked questions
About McCook Central Elementary - 02What is the total enrollment at McCook Central Elementary - 02?
McCook Central Elementary - 02 enrolls approximately 225 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does McCook Central Elementary - 02 serve?
McCook Central Elementary - 02 serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at McCook Central Elementary - 02?
Approximately 12.6:1 students per teacher at McCook Central Elementary - 02.
What is the student diversity at McCook Central Elementary - 02?
Student demographics at McCook Central Elementary - 02 are roughly 92% White, 4% Hispanic, 4% Two or more.
Who oversees McCook Central Elementary - 02?
McCook Central Elementary - 02 is overseen by McCook Central School District 43-7 in McCook County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.