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Greenwood Elementary School

Q: Is Greenwood Elementary School a good school?

Greenwood Elementary School ranks 398 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

398^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 31% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Greenwood Elementary School is a public elementary school in Des Moines, Iowa, serving grades PK-5 with 307 students. Despite being part of the Des Moines Independent Community School District, which is ranked 306 out of 313 districts in the state, Greenwood Elementary consistently outperforms the district and the state of Iowa in standardized test scores across all grade levels and subjects.

For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, Greenwood's 4th-grade students scored 84.4% proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 55.9% for the district and 76% for the state. However, the school faces challenges related to high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 21.6% to 42% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average. Additionally, Greenwood Elementary has a relatively high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 49.84% to 55.51% over the past few years, indicating a higher proportion of students from low-income families.

Despite these challenges, Greenwood Elementary's strong academic performance in many areas suggests that the school has the potential to continue improving and serving its students well. The school's leadership and teachers should be commended for their efforts and encouraged to identify and address the root causes of the chronic absenteeism issue. Compared to nearby schools like Edmunds Elementary and King Elementary, Greenwood Elementary generally outperforms them in test scores, indicating that it is a relatively high-performing school within the Des Moines district.

293

Students ?

14.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,236

Per pupil spending ?

46.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

316 37th Street
Des Moines, IA 50312

(515) 242-8410

District: Des Moines Independent Community School District

Students who attend Greenwood Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Callanan Middle School
High:	Roosevelt High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

56.0%

African American:

16.7%

Hispanic:

12.6%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Greenwood Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 40th percentile in 2015 → 31st in 2025

Strengths

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Des Moines Independent Community School District

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 9 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school67%

District avg50%

Iowa avg71%

398^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 31%▼ down 9 pts since 2015

From bottom 40% (2015) to bottom 31% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^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	40.7	398 of 576	30.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	45.1	364 of 557	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	24.1	466 of 565	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	54.5	290 of 574	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	36.6	408 of 567	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.3	404 of 603	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	29.4	450 of 567	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	46.1	375 of 574	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	43.9	409 of 599	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2015	51.8	371 of 616	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2014	48.0	393 of 603	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2013	49.4	381 of 624	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	42.4	438 of 626	30.0%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics69%-5 vs state

English Language Arts68%-3 vs state

Science57%-7 vs state

★

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Schools Near Greenwood 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 Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Greenwood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	316 37th Street	Des Moines	50312	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-8410	293	20	14.6	46.4%	164 (56.0%)	49 (16.7%)	37 (12.6%)	5 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	34 (11.6%)	40.7	398^th of 576 public elementary schools	30.9%		45.1	364^th of 557 public elementary schools	34.6%	34	65.9	84.4	57.1	63.4	81.3	64.3	57.1	$16,236	$666	$15,571
Hubbell Elementary	Public	K-5	800 42nd St	Des Moines	50312	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-8414	362	24	14.8	42.8%	213 (58.8%)	57 (15.7%)	49 (13.5%)	7 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (9.9%)	44.2	375^th of 576 public elementary schools	34.9%		45.4	360^th of 557 public elementary schools	35.4%	15	67.2	76.7	67.2	70.7	66.7	70.5	60.7	$14,542	$654	$13,888
Downtown School	Public	K-5	1800 Grand Avenue	Des Moines	50309	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 284-5848	197	15	13.4	21.3%	133 (67.5%)	16 (8.1%)	26 (13.2%)	3 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (9.6%)	72.3	145^th of 576 public elementary schools	74.8%		71.2	149^th of 557 public elementary schools	73.2%	4	73.5	71.4	85.7	85.3	82.1	83.3	76.2	$14,247	$621	$13,626
Hanawalt Elementary	Public	K-5	225 56th Street	Des Moines	50312	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-8411	312	24	13.0	49.4%	173 (55.4%)	81 (26.0%)	42 (13.5%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (4.5%)	34.8	437^th of 576 public elementary schools	24.1%		50.3	325^th of 557 public elementary schools	41.7%	112	47.3	70.2	64.0	58.2	72.3	80.0	58.0	$14,934	$665	$14,269
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
Perkins Elementary School	Public	K-5	4301 College	Des Moines	50311	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8430	438	29	15.0	62.8%	188 (42.9%)	85 (19.4%)	98 (22.4%)	22 (5.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (9.6%)	24.7	474^th of 576 public elementary schools	17.7%		49	342^nd of 557 public elementary schools	38.6%	132	53.8	60.9	64.5	64.6	62.5	59.2	55.3	$14,697	$1,156	$13,541
Walnut Street School	Public	PK, KG-5	901 Walnut St	Des Moines	50309	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8438	257	17	14.9	62.3%	76 (29.6%)	84 (32.7%)	49 (19.1%)	13 (5.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (13.6%)	22.4	485^th of 576 public elementary schools	15.8%		33	430^th of 557 public elementary schools	22.8%	55	55.8	72.0	63.0	39.5	61.5	51.9	59.3	$16,042	$659	$15,382
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
Windsor Elementary	Public	K-5	5912 University Avenue	Des Moines	50311	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-8440	254	22	11.7	57.5%	128 (50.4%)	35 (13.8%)	56 (22.0%)	7 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (11.0%)	24.4	478^th of 576 public elementary schools	17.0%		28	448^th of 557 public elementary schools	19.6%	30	50.0	75.0	55.6	61.8	64.7	54.5	44.4	$15,936	$723	$15,213
Horizon Science Academy Des Moines	Public, Charter	PK, KG-4	4801 Franklin Ave 2nd	Des Moines	50310	Polk County	Charter Organization: Concept Schools	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(515) 335-1937	150	8	18.7	79.3%	68 (45.3%)	41 (27.3%)	21 (14.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (13.3%)	18.1	496^th of 576 public elementary schools	13.9%					(n/a)	36.8	50.0		73.7	58.3

Frequently Asked Questions about Greenwood Elementary School

Is Greenwood Elementary School a good school?

Greenwood Elementary School ranks 398^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Greenwood Elementary School attend?

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

Middle : Callanan Middle School
High : Roosevelt High School

What district is Greenwood Elementary School in?

Des Moines Independent Community School District

What is the racial makeup of Greenwood Elementary School?

Students at Greenwood Elementary School are 56% White, 17% African American, 13% Hispanic, 12% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 1% Pacific Islander.

How many students attend Greenwood Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 293 students attended Greenwood Elementary School.

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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.