Rapid City School District presently has an enrollment of 14,719 students in the public school system. It is the second largest in South Dakota. The district employs a teaching staff of 964. The district provides multi-faceted educational opportunities through regular and special classes and also through community education programs and extensive after school co-curricular activities.

The board of Education meets at 5:30 pm on the second and fourth Monday of every month with the exception of December and July when only one meeting is held. Meetings are held in the Council Chambers on the second floor of the City/School Administration Center at 300 Sixth street. The public is encouraged to attend. For more information see our link to the Rapid City School website.

Classrooms networked

• Wiring in all district classrooms for Internet and intranet access was completed in 1999 with the Governor’s assistance through the "Wiring the Schools" Project.
• Each Rapid City Area School includes a Library Media Center staffed by a library media specialist. The building level Library Media Center is supported by a district-wide Resource Center that provides, on a daily basis, materials used for both teacher and student throughout their curriculum.
• ACT scores increased for the total group for the second consecutive year to 22.5. While more Rapid City Area schools (RCAS) graduates took the ACT than ever before, district scores remained higher than the state and nation.
• District scores were also higher than state and national scores for those students who took the core curriculum and those who took less than the core curriculum.
• The proportion of Rapid City students taking college preparatory courses also increased from 60 percent in 1998 to 69 percent in 1999.
• South Dakota ranked third in the nation among states where 70 percent or more of graduates tested.

First graders learning to read and enjoying it!

• Last year with smaller class sizes and a focus on k-1 literacy, first grade SAT 9 scores in reading comprehension increased from average in the fall to high average in the spring.

2000 SAT 9 / OLSAT highlights:

• In the first year of the new SAT 9 basic skills achievement test, fourth, eighth, and eleventh graders scored high average in reading, mathematics, language, science, social studies, listening skills, using information, thinking skills, and the total test with one exception 4th graders scored average on language.
• 89 percent of fourth graders, 96 percent of eighth graders, and 96 percent of eleventh graders performed at or above their ability level on the SAT 9.

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