James Elementary School

James Elementary School, a small elementary-level community in Ottumwa, Iowa, part of Ottumwa Comm School District, educates 249 students, covering grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 325 students per school, that is 23% below typical.

James Elementary School is one of 12 schools operated by Ottumwa Comm School District, a district that works with 5,005 students overall.

For racial and ethnic makeup, James Elementary School shows that the largest single group is White at 34%, but no single group is in the majority. Other groups include 23% Hispanic, 22% Pacific Islander, 16% Black, 3% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 79% White, putting the school's mix visibly less White than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 19 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 13.1:1 students per teacher. The state averages about 13.7:1, putting this campus right in line with peers. Roughly 68% of students at James Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Wapello County (around 48%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, James Elementary School falls in the UNDERPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations residual. Given its student profile, a typical campus would land near 57.8%; this one comes in at 41.5%, -16.3 points off the demographic line.

In the broader community, ACS estimates for Wapello County put median household earnings sit near $64,766, about 20% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 12%. In all, Wapello County runs 18 public schools (combined enrollment of about 6,892 students), of which James Elementary School is one.

Gateway High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.6 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around James Elementary School. On composite proficiency, James Elementary School comes 6th of 7 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 54.8%.

The campus sits in a town-center setting.

Trend over the last 7 years. James Elementary School's enrollment has edged up 35% since 2018, when it stood at 185 (now 249). White enrollment moved from 45% to 34% across the same window. Class-load math has loosened: from 11.2:1 in 2018 to 13.1:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, members of the James Elementary School community share and discuss open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.