Baltic Elementary School - Baltic, SD

“Preparing Students to be Successful in Life” is the mission of the Baltic School District, a small district in eastern South Dakota. We, the staff of Baltic Elementary School, believe it is our responsibility to build a solid foundation for that future success. To achieve our mission, we form partnerships with students, parents, and community members/organizations to work together to ensure all students have the opportunity to succeed. Our commitment to student success begins with a district-run preschool that ensures our students enter kindergarten prepared for success. Once a child enters our elementary, he or she is placed in an intimate learning environment with a low teacher/student ratio that enables the teacher to meet the unique needs of each individual. To meet these needs, our staff engages in professional development opportunities to ensure mastery of the tools required to provide a world-class education for our students, an education which is both rigorous and aligned to state and Common Core standards. At Baltic Elementary School, our students consistently achieve at a high level. As a result, Baltic Elementary School was named a South Dakota Distinguished School from the commencement of the award in 2004 until its cessation in 2011, as well as a South Dakota Status School the two years that designation was conferred. These accolades, a testament to our dedicated staff and involved parents and community members, show that Baltic Elementary School is truly worthy of being named a National Blue Ribbon School.