Sugar-salem Joint District, ID

Original Research by School Decision on Sugar-salem Joint District

Sugar-Salem Joint District covers a stretch of Madison County, Idaho, taking in communities around Sugar City, Rexburg, Newdale, and Teton. The district serves students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade across six schools: Central Elementary, Kershaw Intermediate, Sugar-Salem Junior High, Sugar-Salem High, Valley View Alternative High, and Sugar-Salem Online. The enrollment is moderate for a rural Idaho district, and the student body is predominantly white, with a small Hispanic population and very small shares of other racial groups. Free-or-reduced-price lunch figures were not available, and the same gap applies to special-population data such as English-learner and special-education counts, so it is hard to read the economic and support landscape from what is on the page.

On state testing, the most recent ISAT results tell a mixed story. Math proficiency starts strongest in the earliest tested grades, with roughly half of third graders meeting or exceeding standards, then steps down at each successive grade level until eighth grade, where fewer than a third of students reach proficiency. That downward slope across the grade span is a pattern a parent may want to ask about, since it suggests students are losing ground as they move from elementary into middle school rather than holding steady. ELA results are more varied but generally sit in a middling band, with some grades approaching half of students proficient and others a bit below. Science, tested only in fifth and eighth grade, runs weaker, with eighth-grade science being the single lowest result in the district's data. Average scale scores and participation rates were not reported, so the proficiency picture is the main signal available.

No graduation rate data was provided for the district, and no civil-rights reporting, course-access catalog, or staffing detail was included, so those dimensions cannot be characterized here. The district does operate an alternative high school and an online school alongside its conventional campuses, which gives families some flexibility if a traditional setting is not the right fit. We searched for recent district-level changes that parents might care about and found little of lasting impact on record, so there is nothing to report on that front.

The housing market across the district's zip codes is a meaningful part of the picture for any family considering the area. Weighted home values sit below the Idaho state benchmark but above the national one, and values have been climbing at a brisk year-over-year pace, with some pockets like Newdale appreciating faster than others. Rent data is limited to the Rexburg zip code and runs modest relative to typical incomes. The estimated mortgage on a typical home costs substantially more than renting, which means families weighing purchase versus rental will feel a real gap. Madison County is home to Brigham Young University-Idaho in nearby Rexburg, which shapes the local economy and housing demand, though the district brief did not surface specific enrollment or growth impacts.

What the data supports is a picture of a small-to-mid-size rural district with a fairly homogeneous student body, a standard set of school configurations, and some alternative and online options for families who need them. Academic performance is uneven, with relative strength in early-grade math and broader weakness as students advance, particularly in middle-school math and science. A parent trying to understand whether this district fits their child would do well to ask school leaders about the proficiency slide in the upper grades and what supports or interventions are in place for students moving from intermediate into junior high. The housing market is appreciating but remains more affordable than much of Idaho, and rental costs are modest, though purchasing a home carries a heavier monthly burden than renting by a wide margin.

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District Context

Officially reported figures, 2024-25.

Enrollment

2,199

Grades

PK–12

Schools

Student body

Hispanic 9%

Black 1%

White 87%

Asian 1%

Two+ 2%

Am. Indian / AK Native 0%

Hawaiian / Pac. Isl. 0%

Schools in this District

6 schools are officially reported under this district.

CENTRAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

SUGAR-SALEM HIGH SCHOOL

KERSHAW INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL

SUGAR-SALEM JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

VALLEY VIEW ALTERNATIVE HIGH SCHOOL

SUGAR-SALEM ONLINE

Academic Performance

Percent of students meeting or exceeding state standards, by grade.

Mathematics

6 grades reported

50%

Grade 3

48%

Grade 4

37%

Grade 5

37%

Grade 6

33%

Grade 7

30%

Grade 8

English Language Arts

6 grades reported

38%

Grade 3

49%

Grade 4

50%

Grade 5

44%

Grade 6

40%

Grade 7

48%

Grade 8

Science

2 grades reported

41%

Grade 5

26%

Grade 8

Housing & Real Estate

Data as of April 2026 | District-weighted from constituent ZIP codes

Home Values

Typical home value$427,560

Year-over-year change+8.2%

Range across 5 ZIP codes$356K to $505K

vs. state typical0.90x

vs. national typical1.16x

Home value trend (12 months)

ZIP code home values (5 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Value	YoY	Weight
83440	Rexburg	$423K	+5.7%	31.0%
83436	Newdale	$505K	+13.1%	29.9%
83445		$356K	+5.8%	20.5%
83448	Sugar City	$397K	+5.6%	11.6%
83451	Teton	$377K	+9.9%	6.3%

Rental Market

Typical monthly rent$1,157/mo

Year-over-year change+1.5%

Rent trend (12 months)

ZIP code rents (1 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Rent/mo	YoY	Weight
83440	Rexburg	$1,157	+1.5%	31.0%

Affordability

Est. monthly mortgage (20% down at 6.48%)$2,157/mo

Home price / national median income5.1x

Annual rent / national median income16.6%

Est. mortgage exceeds rent by$1,000/mo

Comparison

State typical home value$477,506 (+1.1% YoY)

National typical home value$368,198 (+0.6% YoY)

State ZHVI trend (12 months)

National ZHVI trend (12 months)

Economic Context

30-year fixed mortgage rate6.48%

National unemployment rate4.3%

National median household income$83,730

CPI: Rent of shelter (index)447.05

30-year fixed mortgage rate (12 months)

National unemployment rate (12 months)

National median household income (12 months)

CPI: Rent of shelter (index) (12 months)

Sources: Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index (Zillow Group), Realtor.com via Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED)

Data Currently Unavailable

Civil Rights Data (CRDC)

This profile is derived exclusively from publicly available federal and state datasets. It may not reflect the most current information available. We encourage parents and families to supplement this data with information published directly on the school’s website, which may include more recent figures, additional programs, or updated enrollment data.