Perkins Elementary School

As a mid-tier primary school in Des Moines, Iowa, Perkins Elementary School caters to 438 students from grades K through 5, one of the schools within Des Moines Independent Comm School District. Compared to the state average of about 325 students per school, that is 35% above typical.

Across the 59 schools in Des Moines Independent Comm School District (29,676 students total), Perkins Elementary School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Perkins Elementary School reports that the most-represented group is White (43%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. Beyond that, the school lists 22% Hispanic, 19% Black, 10% multiracial, 5% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 76% White, putting the school's mix considerably less White than the area baseline.

In terms of school funding signals, Perkins Elementary School records 29 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 15.0:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 13.7:1 average. About 63% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. By comparison, Polk County runs at roughly 49%, so the school's eligibility rate is higher than the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Perkins Elementary School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 60.5%, the actual is 63.9%, a residual of +3.4 points.

Zooming out to the county, Polk County reports that the typical household earns roughly $83,576 per year, about 40% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 7%. Across Polk County's 137 public schools (combined enrollment of about 77,436 students), Perkins Elementary School is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is Horizon Science Academy Des Moines, roughly 0.5 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Perkins Elementary School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Perkins Elementary School at 3rd of 9; the average score across the group is 57.0%.

Perkins Elementary School operates from a metropolitan location.

Looking at the recent track record. Perkins Elementary School's enrollment has declined 3% since 2018, when it stood at 451 (now 438). Over the same period, the White share declined from 49% to 43%.

On the community side, the feed for Perkins Elementary School typically covers open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.