Enrollment
315
Elementary
DISTRICT 347 · STATE 325
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DES MOINES INDEPENDENT COMM SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 190897000556
King Elementary School
1849 Forest Ave, Des Moines, IA 50314 · (515) 242-8417 · Polk County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL315 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
13.1:1
24 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.3:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
96%
303 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 | 68 | 22% |
| Grade 1 | 45 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 59 | 19% |
| Grade 3 | 48 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 43 | 14% |
| Grade 5 | 52 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (68) is 31% larger than its 5th grade class (52).
Student demographics
66%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
36.1%
IA avg 73.6% . +4.5pp since 2023
Math
30.2%
IA avg 70.9% . +0.4pp since 2023
What this means: On the ISASP, Iowa's statewide test, about 36 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 30 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Iowa schools, those numbers are about 74 and 71. Reading and writing scores are up about 5 points since 2023, while math scores have held steady.
ISASP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 36.1% | 30.2% |
| 2023-24 | 31.6% | 29.8% |
% Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: ISASP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of IA schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
29.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
43.8%
based on IA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-13.9pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 30% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 44% typical for Iowa schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
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 King Elementary School
King Elementary School's state test result (29.9% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| King Elementary School this school | 315 | 96.2% | 29.9% |
| Moulton Elementary School Des Moines | 465 | 94.2% | 42.2% |
| Jessie Franklin Taylor Des Moines | 195 | 88.2% | N/A |
| Lovejoy Elementary School Des Moines | 394 | 89.3% | 39.3% |
| Monroe Elementary School Des Moines | 341 | 90.3% | 37.5% |
| Howe Elementary Des Moines | 297 | 90.9% | 42.9% |
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 King Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Iowa | In Polk County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 29.9% | #562 of 564 | #78 of 78 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 30.2% | #562 of 564 no change | #78 of 78 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 36.1% | #559 of 564 ▲ 1 | #77 of 78 no change |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 315 | #343 of 705 | #62 of 89 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.1:1 | #237 of 561 | #32 of 86 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 66.3% | #86 of 561 | #30 of 86 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 96.2% | #1 of 666 | #1 of 89 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -4.3% | #300 of 359 | #51 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
315
+50 (+19%) vs 2020
-14% since 1990-91, when it was 366
Student : Teacher
13.1:1
was 11.0:1
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 | 315 | 24 | 13.1:1 | 96% (303) |
| 2023-24 | 273 | 24.8 | 11.0:1 | 91% (249) |
| 2022-23 | 267 | 22.8 | 11.7:1 | 97% (260) |
| 2020-21 | 265 | 24 | 11.0:1 | 98% (261) |
| 2017-18 | 329 | 31.1 | 10.6:1 | 97% (320) |
| 2015-16 | 358 | 35 | 10.2:1 | 95% (341) |
| 2010-11 | 359 | 29 | 12.4:1 | 89% (321) |
| 2000-01 | 352 | 34 | 10.3:1 | 61% (216) |
| 1990-91 | 366 | 25 | 14.6:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for King Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 4% (329 to 315); teachers down 23% (31.1 to 24).
About King Elementary School
Located in Des Moines, Iowa, King Elementary School is a mid-sized elementary school. The school runs kindergarten through 5 and enrolls 315 students.
Des Moines Independent Comm School District has 59 schools and 29,676 students, and King Elementary School is one of those schools.
At King Elementary School, Hispanic students make up the biggest share, 41%. Other groups include 40% Black, 8% Asian, 6% White, and 5% multiracial. By comparison, Polk County residents are about 10% Hispanic. A diversity index of 66% means there is a 66% chance two randomly chosen students at King Elementary School are from different groups.
The student-to-teacher ratio is 13.1:1. The school has 24 full-time-equivalent teachers. The ratio is within a point of the 13.7:1 average for elementary schools in Iowa. Federal data show 96% of students (303) are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Among public schools in Polk County, the average eligibility rate is 49%.
Test results at King Elementary School are 13.9 points below what its student poverty level predicts. The average proficiency rate across its state test results is 29.9%, compared with a predicted 43.8%, which ranks in the bottom 10% in Iowa.
In Polk County, home to about 503,175 people, the median household earns about $83,576 a year, roughly 40% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 7%. King Elementary School shares Polk County with 136 other public schools.
King Elementary School's closest public school neighbor is Jessie Franklin Taylor, about 0.5 miles away. Counting only straight-line distance, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Its average proficiency rate of 29.9% is below the 40.4% average for nearby schools.
The school's setting, by NCES definition, is City: Mid-size: inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Federal enrollment counts rose from 265 (2020-21) to 315 (2024-25). There were more students per teacher in 2024-25 (13.1:1) than in 2020-21 (11.0:1).
This page collects posts and questions about King Elementary School, such as fundraisers, report cards, and school supplies. Members of the school community can share what they know.
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 King Elementary schools
15 other US public schools in 13 states are named King Elementary. King Elementary School is the 11th largest of the 16.
- King ElementaryStockton, CA · 942 students
- King ElementaryLong Beach, CA · 598 students
- King ElementaryFresno, CA · 566 students
- King Elementary SchoolDorchester, MA · 464 students
- KING ELEMENTARY SCHOOLVAN BUREN, AR · 437 students
Nearby schools
- Jessie Franklin Taylor0.5 mi · 195
- Edmunds Elementary School0.7 mi · 259
- Moulton Elementary School0.8 mi · 465
- Monroe Elementary School1.1 mi · 341
- Ruby Van Meter1.2 mi · 109
- Callanan Middle School1.3 mi · 553
Frequently asked questions
About King Elementary SchoolHow many students attend King Elementary School?
King Elementary School enrolls approximately 315 students in grades KG-05.
Is King Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
King Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at King Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at King Elementary School is approximately 13.1:1 (24 FTE teachers).
How diverse is King Elementary School?
King Elementary School reports a student body of 6% White, 41% Hispanic, 40% Black, 8% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Who oversees King Elementary School?
King Elementary School is overseen by Des Moines Independent Comm School District in Polk County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.