Kansas is a midwestern agricultural powerhouse served by many excellent public school districts. The state’s top school districts span many counties in regions all over the state.

The top ranking school district in Kansas is Waconda USD 272, a smaller system of one elementary school and one junior/senior high school located in Cawker City, KS. Despite its size, the district’s schools have received numerous awards over the years, including a Blue Ribbon School honor and a number of Governor’s Awards.

Blue Valley USD 229, serving portions of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, is second on the list of Kansas’s top school districts. A large system of over 30 schools, Blue Valley’s schools have received a great many accolades over the years. Most recently, 52 high school seniors from the district’s five high schools were named National Merit semifinalists.

Third in the ranking is Spring Hill School District USD 230, a large district serving parts of two counties which is growing at almost five percent annually. Spring Hill schools perform very well, and around 85% of its graduates go on to some form of post-grad education.

De Soto USD 232 (#4) is another large school district of over 7,000 students serving De Soto, KS and parts of several other nearby communities. De Soto USD schools have garnered multiple awards over the years.

Closing out the top five list is Andover USD 385, a large unified district in Andover, KS with a reputation for academic excellence.

Methodology

The following contributed to the ranking: student performance (math and reading test scores), dropout rates, school funding, and area poverty rates. Data was collected from a total of 9,577 school districts.

Did your district make the list?