Enrollment
297
Elementary
DISTRICT 347 · STATE 325
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DES MOINES INDEPENDENT COMM SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 190897000544
Howe Elementary
2900 Indianola, Des Moines, IA 50315 · (515) 242-8413 · Polk County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL297 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
11.4:1
26 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.3:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
91%
270 students
DISTRICT 76% · STATE 41%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 44 | 15% |
| Grade 1 | 45 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 47 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 60 | 20% |
| Grade 4 | 55 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 46 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (44) is about the same size as its 5th grade class (46).
Student demographics
70%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 74% · STATE 48% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
ISASP 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
41.7%
IA avg 73.6% . -1.4pp since 2023
Math
40.9%
IA avg 70.9% . -10.9pp since 2023
What this means: On the ISASP, Iowa's statewide test, about 42 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 41 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Iowa schools, those numbers are about 74 and 71. Reading and writing scores are down about 1 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 11 points.
ISASP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 41.7% | 40.9% |
| 2023-24 | 43.1% | 51.8% |
% Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: ISASP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
42.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
46.5%
based on IA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-3.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 43% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 46% typical for Iowa schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Iowa's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Howe Elementary
Howe Elementary's state test result (42.9% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Howe Elementary this school | 297 | 90.9% | 42.9% |
| Cattell Elementary School Des Moines | 314 | 86.3% | 51.8% |
| South Union Elementary School Des Moines | 422 | 84.8% | 46.6% |
| Willard Elementary School Des Moines | 247 | 88.7% | 52.1% |
| McKinley Elementary School Des Moines | 275 | 86.9% | 46.4% |
| Stowe Elementary School Des Moines | 297 | 84.2% | 33.8% |
Matched among Iowa elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Howe Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Iowa | In Polk County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 42.9% | #539 of 564 | #66 of 78 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 40.9% | #555 of 564 ▼ 41 | #74 of 78 ▼ 15 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 41.7% | #549 of 564 ▼ 12 | #71 of 78 ▼ 7 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 297 | #383 of 705 | #66 of 89 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.4:1 | #63 of 561 | #7 of 86 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 70.3% | #46 of 561 | #20 of 86 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 90.9% | #9 of 666 | #6 of 89 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -3.6% | #315 of 359 | #57 of 64 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
297
+27 (+10%) vs 2020
-7% since 1990-91, when it was 321
Student : Teacher
11.4:1
was 11.7:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 297 | 26 | 11.4:1 | 91% (270) |
| 2023-24 | 303 | 25.3 | 12.0:1 | 78% (236) |
| 2022-23 | 297 | 24.8 | 12.0:1 | 89% (263) |
| 2020-21 | 270 | 23 | 11.7:1 | 88% (238) |
| 2017-18 | 308 | 22.5 | 13.7:1 | 86% (265) |
| 2015-16 | 313 | 26 | 12.0:1 | 87% (273) |
| 2010-11 | 304 | 20 | 15.2:1 | 88% (266) |
| 2000-01 | 270 | 19 | 14.2:1 | 54% (147) |
| 1990-91 | 321 | 19 | 16.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Howe Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 4% (308 to 297); teachers up 15% (22.5 to 26).
About Howe Elementary
Howe Elementary is an elementary school located in Des Moines, Iowa, in Polk County. The school counted 297 students in 2024-25, covering kindergarten through 5.
Howe Elementary is among 59 schools run by Des Moines Independent Comm School District, which serves 29,676 students.
The largest racial or ethnic group at Howe Elementary is Hispanic, with 44% of students. Enrollment also includes 23% White, 21% Black, 7% Asian, and 5% multiracial. The school's Hispanic share is 34 points above the 10% share among Polk County residents. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 70%.
Howe Elementary reports a ratio of 11.4 students per teacher, from 26 full-time-equivalent teachers. By comparison, the average for elementary schools in Iowa is 13.7:1. Student poverty is often measured by lunch eligibility; at Howe Elementary, 91% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. That rate is above the 49% average among public schools in Polk County.
Howe Elementary scores 42.9% on state tests, averaged across results. The predicted figure, based on its student poverty level, is 46.5%.
In the surrounding county, Polk County, median household income comes to about $83,576, about 40% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 7%. The county's public schools total 137, with about 77,436 students.
Of the public schools around it, Howe Elementary is closest to Weeks Middle School, about 0.3 miles away. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 44.0%; Howe Elementary's is 42.9%, ranking 5th of 9.
Its location is classified as City: Mid-size by the National Center for Education Statistics.
Federal enrollment counts rose from 270 (2020-21) to 297 (2024-25).
You can use this page to share news and ask questions about fundraisers, report cards, and school supplies. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
Polk County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
503,175
Census ACS
Median income
$83,576
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
40%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
137
77,436 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Des Moines Independent Comm School District
- Lincoln High SchoolHigh · 2,364 students
- Roosevelt High SchoolHigh · 2,051 students
- East High SchoolHigh · 1,952 students
- North High SchoolHigh · 1,428 students
- Hoover High SchoolHigh · 898 students
- Weeks Middle SchoolMiddle · 688 students
Other schools in Des Moines
- Lincoln High SchoolHigh · 2,364 students
- Roosevelt High SchoolHigh · 2,051 students
- East High SchoolHigh · 1,952 students
- North High SchoolHigh · 1,428 students
- Hoover High SchoolHigh · 898 students
- Weeks Middle SchoolMiddle · 688 students
Other Howe Elementary schools
9 other US public schools in 8 states are named Howe Elementary. Howe Elementary is the 8th largest of the 10.
- Howe Elementary SchoolHowe, OK · 447 students
- Howe Elementary SchoolPittsburgh, PA · 398 students
- HOWE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLSCHENECTADY, NY · 390 students
- Howe ElementaryGreen Bay, WI · 350 students
- Howe Elementary SchoolChicago, IL · 341 students
Nearby schools
- Weeks Middle School0.3 mi · 688
- Jackson Elementary School0.9 mi · 490
- McKinley Elementary School1.0 mi · 275
- South Union Elementary School1.1 mi · 422
- Park Ave Elementary School1.1 mi · 380
- Lincoln High School1.2 mi · 2,364
Frequently asked questions
About Howe ElementaryWhat is the total enrollment at Howe Elementary?
Howe Elementary enrolls approximately 297 students in grades KG-05.
What grades does Howe Elementary serve?
Howe Elementary serves grades KG-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Howe Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Howe Elementary is approximately 11.4:1 (26 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at Howe Elementary?
Student demographics at Howe Elementary are roughly 23% White, 44% Hispanic, 21% Black, 7% Asian, 5% Two or more.
What district is Howe Elementary in?
Howe Elementary is part of Des Moines Independent Comm School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.