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School district · South Dakota · LEAID 4636990

Dakota Valley School District 61-8

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 spends $11,991 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable South Dakota districts with a reliable figure. Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Dakota Valley School District 61-8 come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$56,996
Est. avg teacher salary

Above benchmark

$11,991
Per-pupil spending
1,387
Students enrolled
93rd
Pct. in SD
$56,996

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 spends $11,991 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable South Dakota districts with a reliable figure. Estimated average teacher salary is $56,996, below the national average of $70,245, serving 1,387 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Lower per-pupil spending: Dakota Valley School District 61-8 spends $11,991 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable South Dakota districts with a reliable figure.
  • 93rd percentile for South Dakota
  • 30th percentile nationally
  • 39% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • South Dakota ranks #46 of 49 on the salary estimate and #42 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • Dakota Valley School District 61-8 ranks #9 of 121 South Dakota districts by estimated teacher salary and #117 of 121 by per-pupil spending. Eagle Butte School District 20-1 leads both cuts in this pool; pay rank is still not spending rank
  • +13.4% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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LEAID 4636990 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

Dakota Valley F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-HIGH +13% vs state RANK-ST-TOP P93 in state RANK-NAT-LOW P30 national PPE-LOW $12K/pupil ENR-SMALL 1,387 students INSTR-MID 39% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Yankton FY-2023-LIGHT FY2023 book

FY2023: $56,996 estimated average teacher salary · P93 in South Dakota · P30 nationally · 39% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Yankton (+$258est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for Dakota Valley

Salary neighbourhood · Dakota Valley

Dakota Valley already leads most of its in-state peer set; the chart plots it against the top and bottom pay poles for context (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).

est. salary
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey As of FY2023
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Dakota Valley

Dakota Valley School District 61-8's estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$56,996 30th percentile higher than 30% of 10,684 US districts

Show national distribution $30,000–$40,000: 155 US districts (1%). Below this entry. $40,000–$50,000: 1,360 US districts (13%). Below this entry. $50,000–$60,000: 2,382 US districts (22%). This entry sits in this band. $60,000–$70,000: 2,402 US districts (22%). Above this entry. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). Above this entry. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). Above this entry. $90,000–$100,000: 662 US districts (6%). Above this entry. $100,000–$110,000: 371 US districts (3%). Above this entry. $110,000–$120,000: 249 US districts (2%). Above this entry. $120,000–$130,000: 156 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $130,000–$140,000: 112 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $140,000–$150,000: 57 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $150,000–$160,000: 25 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $160,000–$170,000: 13 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $170,000–$180,000: 10 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $180,000–$190,000: 0 US districts (0%). Above this entry. This district $30,000 $190,000 every reliable-salary US district, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023

Dakota Valley in South Dakota's upper-third pay band

Same 121 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows Dakota Valley School District 61-8 ranks #9 of 121 South Dakota districts by estimated teacher salary and #117 of 121 by per-pupil spending. Eagle Butte School District 20-1 leads both cuts in this pool; pay rank is still not spending rank

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

The same districts by per-pupil spending

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Eagle Butte School District 20-1 leads spending at $46,309 per pupil; Eagle Butte School District 20-1 leads pay.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

What stands out about Dakota Valley School District 61-8

  • Estimated teacher pay here rose +13.4% between FY2019 and FY2023, outpacing South Dakota's statewide +10.1% by 3.3 points, a growth rate faster than 67% of the 146 South Dakota districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.

This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests

Nominal district estimate
$56,995.68

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

South Dakota price level
88.1 / 100

BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.

National-price equivalent
$64,658

+13% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in South Dakota run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.

Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how South Dakota compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.

How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Dakota Valley School District 61-8

What the Numbers Say About Dakota Valley School District 61-8

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 is a small school district in South Dakota, serving 1,387 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $11,991. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $56,996, placing the district in the lower-spending tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 4636990 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the South Dakota statewide average of $50,422, teacher pay in Dakota Valley School District 61-8 runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 13.0% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (18.9% differential). Among enrolling districts in South Dakota, it pays more than 93% of them. South Dakota itself ranks #46 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, Dakota Valley School District 61-8 reports $16.6M in total expenditure against $19.0M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 39% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $4.1M, special-education teacher pay is $0.5M.

How does Dakota Valley School District 61-8 compare?

Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the South Dakota average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 $56,996
Sioux Falls School District 49-5 $54,143
South Dakota avg $50,422
National avg $70,245

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 pays +5.3% more than Sioux Falls School District 49-5 · per-pupil $11,991 vs $13,239

Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.

Data-derived comparison paths

Find comparable South Dakota districts

On pay, Dakota Valley School District 61-8 sits closest to Yankton School District 63-3; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Meade School District 46-1. These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.

Closest on estimated pay
  1. Yankton School District 63-3
  2. Huron School District 02-2
  3. Chester Area School District 39-1
  4. Milbank School District 25-4
  5. Aberdeen School District 06-1
  6. Mitchell School District 17-2
  7. Wagner Community School District 11-4
  8. West Central School District 49-7
  9. Pierre School District 32-2
  10. Tea Area School District 41-5
  11. Madison Central School District 39-2
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. Meade School District 46-1
  2. Douglas School District 51-1
  3. Ipswich Public School District 22-6
  4. Yankton School District 63-3
  5. Beresford School District 61-2
  6. Canton School District 41-1
  7. Chester Area School District 39-1
  8. Elk Point-Jefferson School District 61-7
  9. Mitchell School District 17-2
  10. Madison Central School District 39-2
  11. Lennox School District 41-4

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near Dakota Valley School District 61-8's pay band

Two out-of-state peer sets for Dakota Valley School District 61-8: closest on enrollment (1,387 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($56,996 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.

Similar enrollment

Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).

Similar estimated salary

Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.

Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.

Revenue & Expenditure

$19.0M
Total Revenue
$16.6M
Total Expenditure
$6.5M
Instruction Salaries
39% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$4.1M
Regular Program
$0.5M
Special Education
$0.3M
Vocational
$0.2M
Other Programs

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in Dakota Valley School District 61-8: the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 79% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 21% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.

South Dakota Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized South Dakota districts belongs to Douglas School District 51-1 at $61,738. Dakota Valley School District 61-8 sits in the upper quarter of that field at 7 of 49, nearer the ceiling than the floor. North Dakota and Oklahoma are the states closest to South Dakota on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.

View all South Dakota districts →

Other South Dakota Districts

The bar behind each salary shows its magnitude within this South Dakota sample (including Dakota Valley). Hover or focus a value for the exact comparison.

Groton Area School District 06-6
$54,217
597 students
Bon Homme School District 04-2
$44,143
589 students
Parkston School District 33-3
$52,628
582 students
Chester Area School District 39-1
$57,642
576 students
Mobridge-Pollock 62-6
$51,974
574 students
Redfield School District 56-4
$45,739
555 students

This is a sample of 6 from 120 South Dakota districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about Dakota Valley School District 61-8
What is the average teacher salary in Dakota Valley School District 61-8?

The average teacher salary in Dakota Valley School District 61-8 is $56,996 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).

How does Dakota Valley School District 61-8 teacher pay compare to the South Dakota average?

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 pays 13.0% more than the South Dakota state average of $50,422. The district's average is $56,996.

How does Dakota Valley School District 61-8 teacher pay compare to the national average?

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 pays 18.9% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $56,996.

What is the per-pupil spending in Dakota Valley School District 61-8?

Dakota Valley School District 61-8 spends approximately $11,991 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of Dakota Valley School District 61-8's budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 39% of Dakota Valley School District 61-8's total expenditure of $16.6M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for Dakota Valley School District 61-8
Disclaimer & data sources

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher

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Editorial standards & source notes

According to the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) F-33 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, PlainTeacher's figures are computed directly, no number is typed in by an editor. Dakota Valley School District 61-8's salary and finance figures are computed directly from its FY2023 F-33 submission, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of FY2023.