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Best kept secret on campus at South Union Elementary School?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
422
Elementary
DISTRICT 347 · STATE 325
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DES MOINES INDEPENDENT COMM SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 190897001472
South Union Elementary School
4201 South Union, Des Moines, IA 50315 · (515) 242-8409 · Polk County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL422 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
12.5:1
34 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 13.3:1 · STATE 13.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
85%
358 students
DISTRICT 76% · STATE 41%
Community
4
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 | 58 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 77 | 18% |
| Grade 2 | 84 | 20% |
| Grade 3 | 71 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 57 | 14% |
| Grade 5 | 75 | 18% |
Student demographics
76%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 74% · STATE 48%
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
52.9%
IA avg 73.6% . +7.6pp since 2023
Math
50.0%
IA avg 70.9% . +1.4pp since 2023
What this means: On the ISASP, Iowa's statewide test, about 53 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 50 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 8 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 1 points.
ISASP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 52.9% | 50.0% |
| 2023-24 | 45.3% | 48.6% |
% 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
46.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
49.5%
based on IA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-2.9pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 47% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 50% 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 →
Where South Union Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Iowa | In Polk County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 46.6% | #523 of 564 | #60 of 78 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 50.0% | #518 of 564 | #60 of 78 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 52.9% | #497 of 564 | #53 of 78 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 422 | #192 of 705 | #47 of 89 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.5:1 | #160 of 561 | #24 of 86 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 75.8% | #9 of 561 | #5 of 86 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -14.6% | #157 of 359 | #30 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.
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
422
-72 (-15%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
12.5:1
was 13.3:1
% White
23%
was 40%
% Hispanic
35%
was 26%
% Black
22%
was 17%
% Asian
10%
was 11%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free or reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 422 | 33.8 | 12.5:1 | 85% (358) |
| 2023-24 | 424 | 38.2 | 11.1:1 | 81% (344) |
| 2022-23 | 442 | 37.3 | 11.8:1 | 89% (392) |
| 2017-18 | 494 | 37 | 13.3:1 | 88% (434) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South Union Elementary School.
About South Union Elementary School
Federal records list South Union Elementary School as an elementary school in Des Moines, Iowa. Total enrollment is 422 students, and the grades served are kindergarten through 5. That is 30% larger than the average of about 325 students for elementary schools in Iowa.
Des Moines Independent Comm School District has 29,676 students spread across 59 schools.
The biggest share of students at South Union Elementary School, 35%, is Hispanic. Beyond that, enrollment is 23% White, 22% Black, 10% multiracial, and 10% Asian. In Polk County overall, about 10% of residents are Hispanic. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 76%.
Its ratio of 12.5:1 is based on 33.8 full-time-equivalent teachers. The average for elementary schools in Iowa is 13.7:1, so this school has fewer students per teacher. In all, 85% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. By comparison, the figure for public schools in Polk County is 49%.
Schools in Iowa with a similar free or reduced-price lunch share are predicted to score about 49.5%. South Union Elementary School scores 46.6%.
In Polk County, home to about 503,175 people, median household income comes to about $83,576, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 40%, and about 7% of people live in poverty. Polk County's 137 public schools enroll about 77,436 students and include South Union Elementary School.
Mitchell Early Childhood Center is about 0.8 miles away, making it the nearest public school. South Union Elementary School is one of several public schools in the area, with at least 8 others within five miles. The school's 46.6% average proficiency ranks 3rd among 8 nearby schools.
The school is inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000, according to its NCES locale (City: Mid-size).
From 2017-18 to 2024-25, enrollment decreased from 494 to 422, a 15% decline. Over that span, the White share moved 17 points, to 23%.
People can post here about open houses, carpools, and field trips and other school topics. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to post.
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
Nearby schools
- Mitchell Early Childhood Center0.8 mi · 292
- Park Ave Elementary School0.9 mi · 380
- Weeks Middle School1.0 mi · 688
- Lovejoy Elementary School1.0 mi · 394
- Howe Elementary1.1 mi · 297
- Wright Elementary School1.1 mi · 265
Frequently asked questions
About South Union Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at South Union Elementary School?
South Union Elementary School enrolls approximately 422 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does South Union Elementary School serve?
South Union Elementary School serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Union Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at South Union Elementary School is approximately 12.5:1 (34 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at South Union Elementary School?
At South Union Elementary School, the student body is approximately 23% White, 35% Hispanic, 22% Black, 10% Asian, 10% Two or more.
Is South Union Elementary School public or private?
South Union Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Des Moines Independent Comm School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.