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Oak Park

Public Grades K-5

547^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 5% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Oak Park is an elementary school located in Des Moines, Iowa, serving 309 students in grades K-5. It is part of the Des Moines Independent Community School District, which is ranked 306 out of 313 school districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Oak Park has consistently ranked in the bottom tier of Iowa elementary schools, maintaining a 0-star rating for most of the past decade. The school faces significant challenges, including very high chronic absenteeism rates, consistently lower test scores compared to state and district averages, and an extremely high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. While Oak Park has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, this does not seem to be translating into improved academic outcomes.

Interestingly, the nearby schools within the Des Moines Independent Community School District, such as Jessie Franklin Taylor, Moulton Elementary, King Elementary, and Monroe Elementary, also have low performance and rankings similar to Oak Park. However, Findley Elementary and Madison Elementary appear to perform slightly better, while Cornell Elementary, which is in the Saydel Community School District, outperforms Oak Park and the other Des Moines schools on various measures.

288

Students ?

10.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,793

Per pupil spending ?

78.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3928 6th Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50313

(515) 242-8428

District: Des Moines Independent Community School District

Students who attend Oak Park usually attend:

Middle:	Harding Middle School
High:	North High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

31.9%

White:

27.4%

African American:

24.7%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Oak Park to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2015 → 5th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (43% vs 71% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (5th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (35% vs 22% Iowa)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school43%

District avg50%

Iowa avg71%

547^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 5%▼ down 19 pts since 2015

From bottom 24% (2015) to bottom 5% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

24^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	5.2	547 of 576	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.7	546 of 557	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.3	546 of 565	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.7	559 of 574	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.0	548 of 567	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.5	570 of 603	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	5.5	541 of 567	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	3.1	552 of 574	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	28.1	490 of 599	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	36.3	469 of 616	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	39.0	457 of 603	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	35.8	484 of 624	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	22.8	555 of 626	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics51%-23 vs state

English Language Arts44%-27 vs state

Science21%-43 vs state

★

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Schools Near Oak Park

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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Cornell Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-4	5817 NE 3rd St	Des Moines	50313	Polk County	Saydel Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 244-8173	555	39	14.3	15.5%	391 (70.5%)	13 (2.3%)	115 (20.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (6.3%)	64.3	227^th of 576 public elementary schools	60.6%		34.5	419^th of 557 public elementary schools	24.8%	192	76.5	76.5			81.2	80.0				$12,990	$832	$12,159
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
Samuelson Elementary School	Public	K-5	3929 Bel-Aire Rd	Des Moines	50310	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8441	386	31	12.6	79.0%	87 (22.5%)	95 (24.6%)	55 (14.2%)	118 (30.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	30 (7.8%)	7.1	540^th of 576 public elementary schools	6.3%		13.8	493^rd of 557 public elementary schools	11.5%	47	39.6	57.4	45.5		43.4	57.4	53.0		34.8	$15,980	$1,376	$14,603

Frequently Asked Questions about Oak Park

What schools do graduates of Oak Park attend?

Students who attend Oak Park usually go on to attend:

Middle : Harding Middle School
High : North High School

What is the racial makeup of Oak Park?

Students at Oak Park are 32% Hispanic, 27% White, 25% African American, 7% Two or more races, 7% Asian, 1% American Indian, 1% Pacific Islander.

How many students attend Oak Park?

In the 2024-25 school year, 288 students attended Oak Park.

Is Oak Park a good school?

Oak Park ranks in the bottom 5.0% of Iowa elementary schools.

What district is Oak Park 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.