Vandenberg Elementary - 02

Vandenberg Elementary - 02, a big elementary school in Box Elder, South Dakota, run under Douglas School District 51-1, caters to 454 students, covering grades 4 through 5. Compared to the state average of about 204 students per school, that is 123% above typical.

Within Douglas School District 51-1, which oversees 4 schools and 2,808 students, Vandenberg Elementary - 02 is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Vandenberg Elementary - 02 lists that 65% of the student body identifies as White. Beyond that, the school reports 13% multiracial, 10% Hispanic, 10% Native American. The wider county runs roughly 79% White, putting the school's mix meaningfully less White than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, The school reports having 30 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 15.3:1. That tracks the state average closely. Roughly 41% of students at Vandenberg Elementary - 02 qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

After controlling for student poverty, Vandenberg Elementary - 02 performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 46.4%, the actual is 46.4%, a residual of +0.0 points.

Across the wider county, community-level numbers for Pennington County indicate median household income runs about $74,517, roughly 35% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Vandenberg Elementary - 02 is one of 41 public schools in Pennington County (combined enrollment of about 16,186 students).

Nearest neighbor: Douglas High School - 03, around 0.2 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 3 other public schools cluster around Vandenberg Elementary - 02. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Vandenberg Elementary - 02 at 2nd of 8; the average score across the group is 33.6%.

The school occupies a town-center site.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count contracted 5%: 480 students in 2018 compared to 454 in 2025. The White share of enrollment decreased from 72% to 65% over that span.

On the community side, members of the Vandenberg Elementary - 02 community share and discuss open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.