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Findley Elementary School

Public Grades K-6

553^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 4% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Findley Elementary School is a public elementary school in Des Moines, Iowa, serving 284 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Des Moines Independent Community School District, which is ranked 306 out of 313 school districts in the state.

Findley Elementary faces several challenges. The school has consistently high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 21.6% to 42.0% over the past few years, significantly higher than the state and district averages. Additionally, the school's test scores on the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) are consistently lower than the state and district averages across all grade levels and subject areas, with proficiency rates around 35-45% compared to state averages of 67.9% in English Language Arts and 75.8% in Mathematics. Findley also has a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 80.63% to 88.10%, much higher than the state and district averages.

When compared to other nearby schools in the Des Moines Independent Community School District, such as Carver Elementary, King Elementary School, and Garton Elementary, Findley Elementary is one of the lower-performing schools in the district, with most nearby schools having higher test scores, lower chronic absenteeism rates, and lower percentages of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. Despite these challenges, the school's student-teacher ratio is relatively low, and its spending per student is higher than the state average, suggesting opportunities for improvement with targeted interventions and support systems.

324

Students ?

12.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,683

Per pupil spending ?

85.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3025 Oxford Street
Des Moines, IA 50313

(515) 242-8407

District: Des Moines Independent Community School District

Students who attend Findley Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Harding Middle School
High:	North High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

28.7%

White:

28.4%

African American:

19.1%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Findley Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 10th percentile in 2015 → 4th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (41% vs 72% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (4th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 6 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school41%

District avg49%

Iowa avg72%

553^rd of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 4%▼ down 6 pts since 2015

From bottom 10% (2015) to bottom 4% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

26^th of 38Elementary Schools in the Des Moines Independent Community School District

306^th of 313Des Moines Independent Community School District among Iowa districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Iowa percentile	Rating
2025	4.6	553 of 576	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.2	513 of 557	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.0	520 of 565	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.3	488 of 574	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.5	519 of 567	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.6	569 of 603	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	3.7	550 of 567	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	9.8	529 of 574	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	15.7	531 of 599	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	13.7	557 of 616	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	42.6	434 of 603	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	36.0	481 of 624	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	34.6	500 of 626	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts45%-26 vs state

Mathematics38%-35 vs state

Science36%-28 vs state

★

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Schools Near Findley Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ISASP English Language Arts (2025)				ISASP Mathematics (2025)				ISASP Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISASP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 4th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 5th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 6th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 6th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Findley Elementary School	Public	K-6	3025 Oxford Street	Des Moines	50313	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8407	324	25	12.7	85.2%	92 (28.4%)	62 (19.1%)	93 (28.7%)	43 (13.3%)	2 (0.6%)	3 (0.9%)	29 (9.0%)	4.6	553^rd of 576 public elementary schools	4.0%		10.2	513^th of 557 public elementary schools	7.9%	40	35.7	44.4	40.4	66.7	33.3	33.3	36.2	54.5	36.2	$16,683	$1,316	$15,366
Cattell Elementary School	Public	K-5	3101 E 12th St	Des Moines	50316	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8403	314	27	11.6	86.3%	88 (28.0%)	65 (20.7%)	101 (32.2%)	28 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	28 (8.9%)	6.8	542^nd of 576 public elementary schools	5.9%		29.4	443^rd of 557 public elementary schools	20.5%	99	47.7	60.0	40.4		47.7	46.0	54.4		26.3	$16,110	$1,920	$14,190
Oak Park	Public	K-5	3928 6th Avenue	Des Moines	50313	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8428	288	27	10.6	78.5%	79 (27.4%)	71 (24.7%)	92 (31.9%)	19 (6.6%)	3 (1.0%)	3 (1.0%)	21 (7.3%)	5.2	547^th of 576 public elementary schools	5.0%		2.7	546^th of 557 public elementary schools	2.0%	1	39.0	51.5	42.6		61.0	45.5	46.8		21.3	$16,793	$1,701	$15,092
Madison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	806 E Hoffman St	Des Moines	50316	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8420	285	24	12.0	88.8%	60 (21.1%)	18 (6.3%)	154 (54.0%)	30 (10.5%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (7.4%)	15.2	508^th of 576 public elementary schools	11.8%		4.9	538^th of 557 public elementary schools	3.4%	30	30.8	70.6	60.0		38.5	55.9	62.5		30.0	$18,238	$1,698	$16,540
Moulton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1541 8th Street	Des Moines	50314	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8427	465	33	14.2	94.2%	28 (6.0%)	240 (51.6%)	140 (30.1%)	27 (5.8%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.6%)	9	534^th of 576 public elementary schools	7.3%		7.2	526^th of 557 public elementary schools	5.6%	8	36.5	44.3	54.0		40.5	34.4	66.7		38.1	$16,426	$1,675	$14,751
Carver Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	705 E University Ave	Des Moines	50316	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8418	436	31	14.1	92.4%	31 (7.1%)	96 (22.0%)	260 (59.6%)	19 (4.4%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.0%)	3.2	565^th of 576 public elementary schools	1.9%		3.7	544^th of 557 public elementary schools	2.3%	21	33.9	47.4	36.5		44.6	47.4	47.6		36.5	$17,672	$1,648	$16,024
King Elementary School	Public	K-5	1849 Forest Ave	Des Moines	50314	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8417	315	24	13.1	96.2%	19 (6.0%)	126 (40.0%)	128 (40.6%)	25 (7.9%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.8%)	1.5	573^rd of 576 public elementary schools	0.5%		1	555^th of 557 public elementary schools	0.4%	18	34.1	29.7	43.9		46.3	27.0	17.1		26.8	$18,403	$2,345	$16,058
Garton Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2820 E 24th St	Des Moines	50317	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8408	535	36	14.8	89.3%	101 (18.9%)	94 (17.6%)	243 (45.4%)	58 (10.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	38 (7.1%)	5	552^nd of 576 public elementary schools	4.2%		12.4	499^th of 557 public elementary schools	10.4%	53	37.8	49.2	33.8		63.5	47.6	41.3		28.8	$16,721	$1,650	$15,072
Edmunds Elementary School	Public	K-5	950 15th Street	Des Moines	50314	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 243-1174	259	29	9.0	93.8%	19 (7.3%)	187 (72.2%)	36 (13.9%)	6 (2.3%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	9 (3.5%)	1	574^th of 576 public elementary schools	0.3%		1.7	551^st of 557 public elementary schools	1.1%	23	22.5	45.5	37.8		37.5	33.3	40.5		18.9	$18,276	$2,057	$16,219
Monroe Elementary School	Public	K-5	2250 30th St	Des Moines	50310	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8425	341	30	11.3	90.3%	37 (10.9%)	160 (46.9%)	85 (24.9%)	45 (13.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	12 (3.5%)	2.9	567^th of 576 public elementary schools	1.6%		1.8	550^th of 557 public elementary schools	1.3%	17	38.5	40.0	38.5		50.0	51.1	40.4		29.4	$19,913	$3,902	$16,011

Frequently Asked Questions about Findley Elementary School

Is Findley Elementary School a good school?

Findley Elementary School ranks in the bottom 4.0% of Iowa elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Findley Elementary School?

Students at Findley Elementary School are 29% Hispanic, 28% White, 19% African American, 13% Asian, 9% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Findley Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Findley Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Harding Middle School
High : North High School

How many students attend Findley Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 324 students attended Findley Elementary School.

What district is Findley Elementary School in?

Des Moines Independent Community School District

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Iowa Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.