School district · Iowa

Des Moines Independent Comm School District

Des Moines Independent Comm School District in Iowa: 59 public schools with 29,676 students and 14.4 students per teacher in the 2024–25 school year. It spent $15,990 per student in FY2024.

Schools: 59
Students: 29,676
Students per teacher: 14.4; IA 13.8 · US 15.1
Spending per student: $15,990; IA $13.6K · US $17.6K

Staff

Full-time equivalents reported by the district. Ratios are students per staff member: lower means more staff for each student, not better results.

Teachers (FTE): 2,067
Counselors (FTE): 95.2
Students per counselor: 312; IA 335 · US 357
Psychologists (FTE): 15.7; Librarians (FTE): 0.9

State test results

Share of students scoring proficient or above on Iowa's tests, grades 3–8, 2024–25 school year.

Reading and writing

Iowa: 73%

52%proficient

+1.7 points from 2023–24 school year

A lower share proficient than 98% of school districts in Iowa

Median 76% · 327 school districts compared

11,597 students tested, grades 3–8 · ISASP; proficient means Levels 2-3

Math

Iowa: 73%

50%proficient

+0.7 points from 2023–24 school year

A lower share proficient than 98% of school districts in Iowa

Median 77% · 327 school districts compared

11,609 students tested, grades 3–8 · ISASP; proficient means Levels 2-3

Each state sets its own test and its own bar for “proficient”, so results compare only within a state. Results also follow family income closely: a school's share reflects its students' circumstances as much as its teaching.

Data sourced from the Education Data Center (www.eddatacenter.org), a partner project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc. State Assessment Data Repository version 3.1. More information about these assessments over time, including participation and test changes, is available from the Education Data Center.

Money

Current spending pays for staff, services and supplies; buildings and debt are counted apart. It follows local costs and needs (special education, long bus routes), so it is a comparison, not a grade.

Spending per student, 2015–2024

$11.5K15

$12.0K16

$12.3K17

$12.6K18

$13.2K19

$12.9K20

$13.9K21

$14.3K22

$15.3K23

$16.0K24

Where the money comes from (FY2024)

Federal: 13% · $77.6M
State: 56% · $324.2M
Local: 30% · $173M

Per student (FY2024)

Instruction: $8,652
Support services: $6,635
Buildings and equipment (capital outlay): $43M
Long-term debt: $118.1M

Schools

Open public schools of the district in the 2024–25 school year.

Pre-K centers: 4Elementary schools: 38Middle schools: 10High schools: 6Other schools: 1

School	Grades	Students	Students / teacher	Reading	Math	City or town
Jessie Franklin TaylorFree meals for all	Pre-K	195	17.1	—	—	Des Moines
McKee Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K	235	19.6	—	—	Des Moines
Mitchell Early Childhood CenterFree meals for all	Pre-K	292	18.3	—	—	Des Moines
Woodlawn Early Childhood CenterFree meals for all	Pre-K	216	18.9	—	—	Des Moines
Brubaker Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	622	12.1	46%	44%	Des Moines
Capitol View Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	533	13.4	44%	43%	Des Moines
Carver ElementaryFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	436	14.2	40%	48%	Des Moines
Cattell Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	314	11.6	50%	50%	Des Moines
Cowles Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–8	392	16.7	88%	85%	Des Moines
Downtown SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	197	13.4	77%	83%	Des Moines
Edmunds Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	259	9.0	36%	39%	Des Moines
Findley Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–6	324	12.7	46%	41%	Des Moines
Garton ElementaryFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	535	14.9	38%	51%	Des Moines
Greenwood Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	293	14.6	67%	69%	Des Moines
Hanawalt ElementaryFree meals for all	K–5	312	13.0	60%	70%	Des Moines
Hillis Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	279	11.4	43%	47%	Des Moines
Howe ElementaryFree meals for all	K–5	297	11.4	42%	42%	Des Moines
Hubbell ElementaryFree meals for all	K–5	362	14.8	70%	69%	Des Moines
Jackson Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	490	14.9	54%	50%	Des Moines
Jefferson Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	312	14.2	73%	78%	Des Moines
King Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	315	13.1	35%	29%	Des Moines
Lovejoy Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	394	12.1	41%	42%	Des Moines
Madison Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	285	12.1	54%	53%	Des Moines
McKinley Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	275	12.0	49%	49%	Des Moines
Monroe Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	341	11.4	39%	46%	Des Moines
Moore Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	285	12.1	57%	50%	Des Moines
Morris Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	519	13.3	50%	49%	Des Moines
Moulton Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	465	14.3	43%	46%	Des Moines
Oak ParkFree meals for all	K–5	288	10.6	45%	52%	Des Moines
Park Ave Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	380	13.2	38%	46%	Des Moines
Perkins Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	438	15.0	59%	62%	Des Moines
Phillips ElementaryFree meals for all	K–5	263	11.0	46%	55%	Des Moines
Pleasant Hill Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	241	11.9	62%	62%	Des Moines
River Woods Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	493	11.5	50%	49%	Des Moines
Samuelson Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	386	12.6	46%	50%	Des Moines
South Union Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	422	12.5	52%	52%	Des Moines
Stowe Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	297	12.1	44%	35%	Des Moines
Studebaker Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	561	13.1	49%	45%	Des Moines
Walnut Street SchoolFree meals for all	Pre-K–5	257	14.9	63%	50%	Des Moines
Willard Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	247	10.4	53%	64%	Des Moines
Windsor ElementaryFree meals for all	K–5	254	11.8	63%	62%	Des Moines
Wright Elementary SchoolFree meals for all	K–5	265	12.2	46%	43%	Des Moines
Brody Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	641	16.4	54%	47%	Des Moines
Callanan Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	553	15.8	51%	44%	Des Moines
Goodrell Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	511	15.3	44%	40%	Des Moines
Harding Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	603	15.8	41%	41%	Des Moines
Hiatt Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	488	14.1	44%	35%	Des Moines
Hoyt Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	455	15.8	43%	40%	Des Moines
McCombs Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	670	16.8	56%	55%	Des Moines
Meredith Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	662	16.4	59%	51%	Des Moines
Merrill Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	657	16.8	75%	74%	Des Moines
Weeks Middle SchoolFree meals for all	6–8	688	14.2	49%	39%	Des Moines
East High SchoolFree meals for all	9–12	1,952	21.8	—	—	Des Moines
Hoover High SchoolFree meals for all	9–12	898	20.6	—	—	Des Moines
Lincoln High SchoolFree meals for all	9–12	2,364	25.2	—	—	Des Moines
North High SchoolFree meals for all	9–12	1,428	21.5	—	—	Des Moines
Roosevelt High SchoolFree meals for all	9–12	2,051	31.2	—	—	Des Moines
Virtual CampusFully virtual	9–12	380	24.0	—	—	Des Moines
Ruby Van MeterSpecial educationFree meals for all	K–12	109	5.0	—	—	Des Moines

Reading and Math: share of tested students proficient or above on the state's own tests (grades 3–8, 2024–25 school year). Compare only within a state.

Sources

Address: 2100 Fleur Drive, Des Moines, IA 50321
Phone: (515)242-7911

Website

Public schools and school districts (National Center for Education Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau), 2024–25 school year. NCES Common Core of Data and EDGE public school geocodes; U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances and cartographic boundary files (places).
Annual Survey of School System Finances (U.S. Census Bureau), FY2024. U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances (F-33).
State Assessment Data Repository (Education Data Center), 2024–25 school year. Data sourced from the Education Data Center (www.eddatacenter.org), a partner project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc. State Assessment Data Repository v3.1.