The top reported proficiency rate is 20% in English language arts. The lowest is 14% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Hawthorne Elementary - 56
Hawthorne Elementary sits on North Spring Avenue in Sioux Falls, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as part of the Sioux Falls School District. It is a traditional public school, not a charter or magnet, and its enrollment is moderate for an elementary building in this district. The school sits in a city that has grown steadily for decades, with healthcare, finance, and retail now anchoring the local economy alongside food processing and manufacturing. Sioux Falls is South Dakota's largest city, positioned at the junction of two interstate highways, and its school district is the largest in the state, operating dozens of elementary, middle, and high schools spread across the city rather than clustered downtown.
The student body at Hawthorne is one of the most diverse in the district. White students make up the largest single group but represent only about a third of the school. Black and Hispanic students each account for roughly a fifth, and American Indian students make up a substantial share as well. A smaller portion of students identify as Asian, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, or two or more races. Every student at Hawthorne qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school firmly in the category of serving an economically disadvantaged community. The pre-kindergarten cohort is the largest grade in the building, which suggests the school functions as an early-entry point for many families in the neighborhood.
On state assessments administered under the South Dakota system, Hawthorne's proficiency results are low in all three tested subjects. Math proficiency falls well below what most schools in the state post, with only a small fraction of tested students reaching proficient or above. English language arts results are somewhat higher but still low, with roughly a fifth of tested students demonstrating proficiency. Science, tested in a smaller subset of grades, lands at a similar level. Participation was full across all subjects, so the results reflect the entire tested population rather than a skewed sample. There is no multi-year trend data available, so it is not possible to say from the provided information whether these numbers represent a decline, a plateau, or improvement from a lower baseline. A parent weighing this school may want to look into what targeted supports and interventions the building uses to address proficiency gaps, and how the district allocates resources to schools serving high-poverty student populations.
The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate, no AP or dual-credit data, and no college-readiness measure to report. Those metrics simply do not apply to an elementary building. Data on individualized education programs, English learner status, discipline, staffing ratios, and attendance was not available in the provided materials, so those dimensions of school climate and support cannot be characterized here.
The surrounding neighborhood offers relatively affordable housing compared with both state and national benchmarks. Home values in the school's zip code sit well below the statewide typical and considerably below the national figure, and rents are modest relative to income. The broader Sioux Falls area has seen home values rise slightly year over year, while rents have climbed at a faster clip. A long paved trail loop, Falls Park, and a downtown cultural district centered on the Washington Pavilion give families access to recreation and arts, though the city is largely car-dependent outside the core. Public transit runs on a set of fixed bus lines during the week and on Saturdays.
The district itself is growing. A new elementary school, Susan B. Anthony, has opened to accommodate rising enrollment, and capacity decisions continue to shape boundary assignments across the city. For a family looking at Hawthorne, the core questions are academic: the school serves a high-need, diverse population in an affordable part of a growing city, and its current proficiency results indicate real challenges in moving students to grade-level standards.
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