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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WATERTOWN SCHOOL DISTRICT 14-4·NCES 467662000718

Watertown Middle School - 02

1700 11th St NE, Watertown, SD 57201 · (605) 882-6370 · Codington County
GRADES 07–08MIDDLE33-TOWNREGULAR SCHOOL575 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 79% of South Dakota public middle schools
  • B+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
  • A-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

Enrollment
575
Middle
DISTRICT 554 · STATE 187
Student : Teacher
14.8:1
39 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.6:1 · STATE 13.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
35%
201 students
DISTRICT 39% · STATE 42%
Community
1
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

GradeStudentsShare
Grade 727748%
Grade 829852%
Student demographics
31%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 35% · STATE 53% · US 70%
White
47382%
DISTRICT 80% · STATE 66% · US 43%
Hispanic
417%
DISTRICT 8% · STATE 9% · US 30%
Black
20%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 3% · US 15%
Asian
20%
DISTRICT 1% · STATE 2% · US 6%
Two+
387%
DISTRICT 7% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Native American
193%
DISTRICT 4% · STATE 14% · US 1%
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
Male
30553%
Female
27047%

School pathway

Students here typically continue to
Watertown Middle School - 02→Watertown High School - 01
Feeds from
Watertown Intermediate School - 1305–06
Based on grade levels within Watertown School District 14-4. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.

Discussions

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Test scores

SD Smarter Balanced 2024-25 . % Proficient
English Language Arts
63.6%
SD avg 50.3% . +0.7pp since 2022
Math
52.8%
SD avg 47.5% . +1.9pp since 2022

What this means: On the SD Smarter Balanced, South Dakota's statewide test, about 64 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 53 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all South Dakota schools, those numbers are about 50 and 47. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2022, while math scores are up about 2 points.

SD Smarter Balanced results by year

School yearEnglish Language ArtsMath
2024-2563.6%52.8%
2023-2460.0%55.5%
2022-2362.9%50.9%
% Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: SD Smarter Balanced. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →

BeatsExpectations

Demographically-adjusted score · methodology
Tier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
52.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
48.7%
based on SD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+3.9pp
above demographic expectation

What this means: About 53% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% 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 Watertown Middle School - 02

Watertown Middle School - 02's state test result (52.6% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.

SchoolStudentsLow-incomeProficient
Watertown Middle School - 02 this school57535.0%52.6%
Watertown Intermediate School - 13
Watertown
53238.5%51.1%
Stagebarn Middle School - 10
Summerset
43228.2%46.6%
Sturgis Williams Middle School - 02
Sturgis
49043.1%47.1%
Mitchell Middle School - 02
Mitchell
57840.0%52.9%
West Middle School - 37
Rapid City
59127.2%44.2%
Matched among South Dakota middle 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 Watertown Middle School - 02 ranks

Among middle schools
MeasureThis schoolIn South Dakota
State test proficiency
ranked highest first
52.6%#20 of 64
Math proficiency
ranked highest first
52.8%#17 of 64
▼ 6
Reading proficiency
ranked highest first
63.6%#12 of 65
▲ 3
Enrollment
ranked largest first
575#20 of 165
Students per teacher
ranked fewest first
14.8:1#24 of 42
Diversity index
ranked most diverse first
31.3%#32 of 42
Free and reduced lunch
ranked highest share first
35.0%#25 of 65
Enrollment change since 2017-18
ranked steepest decline first
-8.3%#14 of 26
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 2024-25
Enrollment
575
-55 (-9%) vs 2020
-35% since 1990-91, when it was 879
Student : Teacher
14.8:1
was 17.5:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-2557538.814.8:135% (201)
2023-2458737.815.5:128% (164)
2022-2360036.116.6:126% (158)
2020-216303617.5:129% (183)
2017-186273816.5:132% (198)
2015-165864213.9:135% (204)
2010-115594512.4:130% (169)
2000-016254414.2:123% (143)
1990-918794619.1:1N/A
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Watertown Middle School - 02.

Since 2017-18: students down 8% (627 to 575); teachers up 2% (38 to 38.8).

About Watertown Middle School - 02

Watertown Middle School - 02, a large middle school, is located in Watertown, South Dakota. The school's enrollment of 575 students covers grades 7 through 8. Enrollment is 207% higher than the average for middle schools in South Dakota, which is about 187.

Watertown Middle School - 02 is one school in a 9-school district, Watertown School District 14-4, which enrolls 3,754 students.

At Watertown Middle School - 02, White students make up 82% of the student body. Other students are 7% Hispanic, 7% multiracial, and 3% Native American. By comparison, Codington County residents are about 91% White. The chance that two students picked at random at Watertown Middle School - 02 belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 31%.

The ratio of students to teachers is 14.8:1, with 38.8 full-time-equivalent teachers on staff. The 13.4:1 average for middle schools in South Dakota is lower than this school's figure. Lunch subsidy eligibility at Watertown Middle School - 02 is 35%. That is close to the 36% average for public schools in Codington County.

The allk12 Grade for Watertown Middle School - 02 is A-. Compared with South Dakota public middle schools, the school scored higher than 79% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.

On a poverty-adjusted basis, Watertown Middle School - 02 falls in the middle 80% of South Dakota schools: 52.6% actual against 48.7% predicted.

Codington County census figures show that median household income is about $72,727, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 21% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 5%. A total of 18 public schools operate in Codington County, serving about 4,561 students.

Lincoln Elementary - 05 is located about 0.7 miles from Watertown Middle School - 02. Other public schools within five miles: 7. The nearest schools with test data average 53.9%, higher than Watertown Middle School - 02's 52.6%.

The NCES locale for Watertown Middle School - 02 is Town: Remote, which covers schools in a town far from an urbanized area.

The student count in 2024-25 was 575, 9% below the 630 of 2020-21. By 2024-25, the school had 14.8 students per teacher, compared with 17.5 in 2020-21.

To ask about school safety, transportation, and start times, start a discussion on this page. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.

Codington County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
28,767
Census ACS
Median income
$72,727
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
21%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
18
4,561 students

Quick facts

School name
Watertown Middle School - 02
District
Watertown School District 14-4
Address
1700 11th St NE, Watertown, SD 57201
Phone
(605) 882-6370
County
Codington County
Level
Middle
Grade range
07–08
Total enrollment
575
Teachers (FTE)
39
Student–teacher ratio
14.8:1
Free and reduced lunch
201 (35%)
Locale
33-Town: Remote
NCES ID
467662000718
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Watertown School District 14-4
Other schools in Watertown
Other Watertown Middle schools

2 other US public schools in 3 states are named Watertown Middle. Watertown Middle School - 02 is the 2nd largest of the 3.

Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Watertown Middle School - 02
How many students attend Watertown Middle School - 02?
Watertown Middle School - 02 enrolls approximately 575 students in grades 07-08.
What grades does Watertown Middle School - 02 serve?
Watertown Middle School - 02 serves grades 07-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Watertown Middle School - 02?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Watertown Middle School - 02 is approximately 14.8:1 (39 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at Watertown Middle School - 02?
Student demographics at Watertown Middle School - 02 are roughly 82% White, 7% Hispanic, 0% Black, 0% Asian, 7% Two or more.
Is Watertown Middle School - 02 public or private?
Watertown Middle School - 02 is a public K-12 school, overseen by Watertown School District 14-4.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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