Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School

Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School operates as a tiny senior high in Glidden, Iowa, run under Glidden-Ralston Comm School District. Current enrollment sits at 163 students spanning grades 7 through 12. By comparison, Iowa's public schools average about 468 students each, so Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School sits 65% leaner than that benchmark.

Glidden-Ralston Comm School District runs 2 schools in total, collectively educating 390 students. Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School is one of those campuses.

On the student-mix side, Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School shows that nearly all students (93%) are White. Other groups include 6% Hispanic. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 13 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.2:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 17.3:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Around 29% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

After controlling for student poverty, Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School falls in the UNDERPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations residual. Given its student profile, a typical campus would land near 77.5%; this one comes in at 66.6%, -10.9 points off the demographic line.

In the surrounding community, census data for Carroll County shows median household earnings sit near $72,930, roughly 24% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 5% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Carroll County's 10 public schools (combined enrollment of about 2,912 students), Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School is one campus in the mix.

Glidden-Ralston Elementary School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.0 miles from this campus. Within ten miles, there are 5 other public schools, a sparser pattern than typical urban areas. On composite proficiency, Glidden-Ralston Jr-Sr High School comes 8th of 8 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 73.9%.

Geographically, the school is in an outlying area.

Over the past 7-year window. Over the past 7-year window, the student count grew 22%: 134 students in 2018 compared to 163 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 99% to 93% across the same window. Class-load math has loosened: from 10.2:1 in 2018 to 12.2:1 in 2025.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.