The top reported proficiency rate is 62% in English language arts. The lowest is 56% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Patrick Henry Middle School - 07
Patrick Henry Middle School sits on South 5th Avenue in Sioux Falls, serving grades six through eight as one of seven middle schools in the Sioux Falls School District. It is a traditional public school, not a charter or magnet, and its enrollment is distributed almost evenly across the three grade levels. The student body is predominantly white, with smaller populations identifying as Hispanic, multirace, Black, and American Indian or Alaska Native, along with a small Asian cohort. About three in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which sits below what many urban middle schools see and suggests a moderate-income enrollment rather than a high-poverty one.
On state assessments, Patrick Henry posts solid results. In English language arts, a majority of tested students reached proficiency, and the ELA rate runs ahead of both math and science. Math proficiency is somewhat lower but still shows a clear majority of students meeting the bar. Science, tested only at certain grade levels, lands between the two. Participation rates across all three subjects are high, which means the proficiency figures reflect nearly the full student body rather than a self-selected subset. The state uses the SBAC assessment for math and ELA and the SDSA for science, so these results are comparable to other South Dakota schools on the same tests. We looked for year-over-year trend data and did not find clean comparable figures, so we cannot say whether performance is rising, falling, or holding steady. A parent wanting a fuller picture of academic trajectory may want to ask the school directly about that.
The school reports no data on English learners or students with individualized education programs, which leaves a gap in understanding how special populations are served. Course access, staffing ratios, attendance patterns, and discipline data were also not available in the materials we reviewed. These absences are worth noting rather than reading as weaknesses; the school may well track and act on these measures internally. A family whose child receives special education or English-learner services should ask the school how those supports are structured.
Sioux Falls is South Dakota's largest city, and its economy has shifted over decades from an industrial base to one anchored by health care, finance, and retail. Sanford Health and Avera Health are the two largest employers, followed by the school district itself, with Wells Fargo and Citigroup maintaining major operations in the city partly because South Dakota levies no state corporate income tax. Manufacturing and food processing, including the Smithfield Foods plant, still matter. The city sits at the junction of Interstates 29 and 90 in rolling hills along the Big Sioux River, and it has grown rapidly since the late 1970s, with the metropolitan area now accounting for more than a third of the state's population. Growth continues to push south into Lincoln County, and the school district is growing with it. The district recently opened Susan B. Anthony Elementary and continues making capacity decisions that shape boundary assignments and class sizes across its schools.
For daily life, the area around Patrick Henry is largely car-dependent, like most of Sioux Falls outside the downtown core. The city has a thirty-mile paved trail loop for biking and walking, and Falls Park along the river is a signature gathering space. Downtown offers SculptureWalk in the summer, First Friday events, and the Downtown Riverfest. The Washington Pavilion, a cultural center converted from the old Washington High School, houses performing arts, visual arts, and a science center. Sioux Area Metro runs bus lines Monday through Saturday, though coverage is limited compared with a larger transit system.
Housing in the school's zip code is relatively affordable by national standards. Typical home values sit below both the state and national benchmarks, and rents are modest. With mortgage rates still elevated, monthly ownership costs run higher than typical rent, which may make renting the easier entry point for families relocating to the area. The price-to-income ratio is favorable compared with many metros, reflecting Sioux Falls's lower cost of living relative to earnings.
Patrick Henry fits a family looking for a mid-sized middle school with steady academic results in a growing, economically diverse city. The proficiency numbers are a genuine strength, particularly in reading. The gaps in special-population and trend data mean a parent would want to supplement this picture with direct conversations at the school, especially around special education, English-learner support, and how the school handles its continued enrollment pressure.
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