Enrollment
54
Middle
DISTRICT 57 · STATE 187
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WILLOW LAKE SCHOOL DISTRICT 12-3·NCES 467935000952
Willow Lake Middle School - 03
400 Garfield Ave, Willow Lake, SD 57278 · (605) 625-5945 · Clark County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE43-RURALREGULAR SCHOOL54 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 53% 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.
- BBeats 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
20.6:1
3 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 29.7:1 · STATE 13.4:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
39%
21 students
DISTRICT 39% · 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 | 17 | 31% |
| Grade 7 | 21 | 39% |
| Grade 8 | 16 | 30% |
Student demographics
4%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 5% · 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
Willow Lake Middle School - 03→Willow Lake High School - 01
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Willow Lake School District 12-3. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
QUIET COMMUNITY
Be the first to start a discussion at Willow Lake Middle School - 03.
START A DISCUSSIONTest scores
SD Smarter Balanced 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
42.3%
SD avg 50.3% . -8.6pp since 2022
Math
48.1%
SD avg 47.5% . +11.3pp since 2022
What this means: On the SD Smarter Balanced, South Dakota's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 48 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 9 points since 2022, while math scores are up about 11 points.
SD Smarter Balanced results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 42.3% | 48.1% |
| 2023-24 | 60.0% | 45.0% |
| 2022-23 | 50.9% | 36.8% |
% 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
46.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
47.1%
based on SD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 46% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 47% 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 Willow Lake Middle School - 03
Willow Lake Middle School - 03's state test result (46.0% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Willow Lake Middle School - 03 this school | 54 | 38.9% | 46.0% |
| Mount Vernon Middle School - 03 Mount Vernon | 58 | 39.7% | 62.5% |
| Waverly-South Shore Middle School - 03 Waverly | 69 | 37.7% | 32.4% |
| Harding County Middle School - 03 Buffalo | 60 | 33.3% | 50.4% |
| Burke Middle School - 04 Burke | 62 | 41.9% | 45.1% |
| Florence Middle School - 03 Florence | 71 | 32.4% | 25.5% |
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 Willow Lake Middle School - 03 ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In South Dakota |
|---|---|---|
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 54 | #108 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
54
+10 (+23%) vs 2020
+50% since 1990-91, when it was 36
Student : Teacher
20.6:1
was 14.7:1
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 | 54 | 2.6 | 20.6:1 | 39% (21) |
| 2023-24 | 63 | 3.7 | 17.1:1 | 35% (22) |
| 2022-23 | 58 | 4 | 14.7:1 | 29% (17) |
| 2020-21 | 44 | 3 | 14.7:1 | 23% (10) |
| 2017-18 | 39 | 4.1 | 9.6:1 | 38% (15) |
| 2015-16 | 37 | 3 | 12.3:1 | 38% (14) |
| 2010-11 | 26 | 2 | 13.0:1 | 46% (12) |
| 2000-01 | 32 | 3 | 10.7:1 | 38% (12) |
| 1990-91 | 36 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Willow Lake Middle School - 03.
Since 2017-18: students up 38% (39 to 54); teachers down 36% (4.1 to 2.6).
About Willow Lake Middle School - 03
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 is classified as a middle school. It is located in Willow Lake, South Dakota. The school enrolls 54 students, from grades 6 through 8. Average enrollment for middle schools in South Dakota is about 187, so this school runs 71% smaller than that.
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 is a school in Willow Lake School District 12-3. The district has 6 schools and 344 students.
White students are the large majority at Willow Lake Middle School - 03, with 98% of enrollment. By the diversity index, Willow Lake Middle School - 03 comes in at 4%.
Federal staffing data show 2.6 full-time-equivalent teachers at Willow Lake Middle School - 03 and a ratio of 20.6:1. That ratio is over the 13.4:1 average for middle schools in South Dakota. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility covers 39% of students. That is close to the 36% average for public schools in Clark County.
allk12 grades Willow Lake Middle School - 03 a B-. The grade compares the school only with South Dakota public middle schools, because each state gives its own test.
Schools in South Dakota with a similar free or reduced-price lunch share are predicted to score about 47.1%. Willow Lake Middle School - 03 scores 46.0%.
Census estimates describe Clark County this way: median household income is about $70,726, 20% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 5% of people live in poverty. Federal data list 11 public schools in Clark County, with a combined enrollment of about 820.
Willow Lake Elementary - 02 is located less than a tenth of a mile from Willow Lake Middle School - 03. Within five miles are 2 other public schools. Among its closest neighbors with test data, Willow Lake Middle School - 03 is 2nd of 4 on proficiency.
NCES describes the area around Willow Lake Middle School - 03 as Rural: Remote, meaning in rural territory far from an urban area.
Federal counts put enrollment at 44 in 2020-21 and 54 in 2024-25, a 23% rise. In 2020-21, the student-to-teacher ratio was 14.7:1; by 2024-25 it was 20.6:1.
Parents and students can post about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Willow Lake Middle School - 03. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Clark County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
3,917
Census ACS
Median income
$70,726
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
20%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
5%
Below federal line
Schools in county
11
820 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Willow Lake School District 12-3
- Willow Lake Elementary - 02Elementary · 153 students
- Willow Lake High School - 01High · 69 students
- Mayfield Colony Elementary - 04Elementary · 31 students
- Shamrock Colony Elementary - 05Elementary · 21 students
- Collins Colony Elementary - 06Elementary · 16 students
Other schools in Willow Lake
- Willow Lake Elementary - 02Elementary · 153 students
- Willow Lake High School - 01High · 69 students
- Mayfield Colony Elementary - 04Elementary · 31 students
Nearby schools
- Willow Lake Elementary - 020.0 mi · 153
- Willow Lake High School - 010.0 mi · 69
- Mayfield Colony Elementary - 045.5 mi · 31
- Collins Colony Elementary - 066.4 mi · 16
- Shamrock Colony Elementary - 0515.7 mi · 21
- Fordham Colony Elementary - 0416.4 mi · 42
Frequently asked questions
About Willow Lake Middle School - 03How many students attend Willow Lake Middle School - 03?
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 enrolls approximately 54 students in grades 06-08.
What age range does Willow Lake Middle School - 03 serve?
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 serves students from grade 06 through grade 08.
How many teachers does Willow Lake Middle School - 03 have?
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 employs 3 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 20.6:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Willow Lake Middle School - 03?
At Willow Lake Middle School - 03, the student body is approximately 98% White, 2% Hispanic.
Is Willow Lake Middle School - 03 public or private?
Willow Lake Middle School - 03 is a public K-12 school, overseen by Willow Lake School District 12-3.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.