DES MOINES, Iowa — This week, the Iowa Department of Education identified 35 public schools in the state needing "comprehensive support and improvement" because of low performance in the previous academic year.
The state grades each school primarily based on proficiency and growth in subject matter while acknowledging graduation and chronic absenteeism rates, and post-secondary readiness by measuring total college credit.
For the 2023-24 school year, 12 Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) scored within the lowest 5% of Title I schools in the state.
The Des Moines schools on the list are:
- Brubaker Elementary School
- East High School
- Goodrell Middle School
- Harding Middle School
- Hiatt Middle School
- Hoyt Middle School
- King Elementary School
- Lincoln High School
- North High School
- Studebaker Elementary School
- Virtual Campus
- Weeks Middle School
However, state data shows Carver, Edmunds and Monroe elementary schools in DMPS, previously identified as needing "comprehensive support," were removed from the list this year.
DMPS Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts said at the district's school board meeting on Tuesday: "We certainly recognize and acknowledge that there's still much work for us to do. But this certainly is encouraging to the heart and we will continue to press forward and stop at nothing until 100% of our schools no longer have such a designation."
According to state data, of Des Moines' 63 schools 22 were identified in need of "targeted" support and improvements because of gaps within student groups such as English learners or students with disabilities tested in the bottom 5% of the state.
The report illustrates that 377 Iowa schools were in need of targeted support and improvement schools for the 2023-24 school year, compared to 271 the year before. The state has 1,282 schools in total, at all levels.
When the state places a school in the poor-performance category, the most specific improvement and support resources it said it provides are: "creating action plans, and providing implementation support of high-quality instructional resources."
For more on how the Iowa Department of Education's 2024 school ratings list compares to 2023's, click here.