When it comes to school funding, the State of South Dakota's report card is all over the place.

According to numbers released by the Education Law Center, the Mount Rushmore State is excelling in one category, failing in another, and right in the middle on a third.

The latest numbers from 2017 show that the South Dakota Department of Education spends $13,252 per student (cost adjusted), which ranks 25th overall in America. That figure is $794 below the national average of $14,046. Vermont funds at the highest level ($27,588), Arizona the lowest $8,569).

On the plus side, South Dakota is one of only eight states in America to receive an 'A' grade for 'funding distribution', giving high poverty districts 20 percent more funding than low poverty districts. Currently, 15 percent of the state's school-aged children live in poverty.

South Dakota's biggest funding downside came in the area of 'funding effort'. The state was one of 13 nationwide to be slapped with an 'F' grade for funding only 3.03 percent of the state's gross domestic product ($51,832 per capita).


More From KYBB-FM / B102.7