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Helen Lemme Elementary School

Q: Is Helen Lemme Elementary School a good school?

Helen Lemme Elementary School ranks 428 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

428^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 26% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Helen Lemme Elementary School is a public elementary school in Iowa City, Iowa, serving 371 students in grades PK-6 as part of the Iowa City Community School District. The school has seen fluctuating statewide rankings, ranging from 186 out of 603 Iowa elementary schools in 2018-2019 to 428 out of 576 in 2024-2025, with a SchoolDigger rating that has varied from 2 to 3 stars out of 5.

One concerning trend at Helen Lemme Elementary is the increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 13.9% in 2023-2024 to 27.9% in 2022-2023. The school's test scores in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are generally below the district and state averages, though there are some exceptions, such as higher proficiency rates in 3rd and 4th grades. Additionally, the school has seen a rise in the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, from 30.59% in 2021-2022 to 37.2% in 2023-2024.

When compared to other nearby elementary schools in the Iowa City Community School District, Lincoln Elementary School and Bohumil Shimek Elementary School consistently outperform Helen Lemme Elementary on metrics like statewide ranking, test scores, and free/reduced lunch rates. Additionally, Helen Lemme Elementary's spending per student ($12,605 in 2018-2019) is lower than some nearby schools, and its student-teacher ratio has fluctuated, ranging from 13.3 in 2023-2024 to 15.6 in 2022-2023, which is generally higher than nearby schools.

340

Students ?

13.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,605

Per pupil spending ?

38.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3100 Washington St
Iowa City, IA 52245

(319) 688-1125

District: Iowa City Community School District

Students who attend Helen Lemme Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Southeast Middle School
High:	Iowa City High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

61.5%

Hispanic:

17.6%

African American:

15.3%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Helen Lemme Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 56th percentile in 2015 → 26th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (66% vs 71% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 30 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school66%

District avg68%

Iowa avg71%

428^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 26%▼ down 30 pts since 2015

From top 44% (2015) to bottom 26% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

10^th of 18Elementary Schools in the Iowa City Community School District

241^st of 313Iowa City 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	35.9	428 of 576	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	60.7	245 of 557	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.5	243 of 565	57.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	58.6	256 of 574	55.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	48.8	321 of 567	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	68.3	186 of 603	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	62.8	238 of 567	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2017	64.7	230 of 574	59.9%	★★★☆☆
2016	66.7	215 of 599	64.1%	★★★☆☆
2015	60.7	274 of 616	55.5%	★★★☆☆
2014	65.3	227 of 603	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2013	61.8	256 of 624	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	57.5	306 of 626	51.1%	★★★☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts66%-5 vs state

Mathematics66%-8 vs state

Science62%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Helen Lemme 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
Helen Lemme Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3100 Washington St	Iowa City	52245	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1125	340	25	13.8	38.2%	209 (61.5%)	52 (15.3%)	60 (17.6%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (4.7%)	35.9	428^th of 576 public elementary schools	25.7%		60.7	245^th of 557 public elementary schools	56.0%	183	64.2	68.4	66.7	67.9	64.9	64.4	62.2	$12,605	$204	$12,400
Robert Lucas Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	830 Southlawn Dr	Iowa City	52245	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1140	245	18	13.5	49.4%	106 (43.3%)	82 (33.5%)	27 (11.0%)	4 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (10.6%)	18.7	493^rd of 576 public elementary schools	14.4%		34.5	420^th of 557 public elementary schools	24.6%	73	67.5	52.6	51.9	65.0	52.6	55.6	40.7	$14,649	$1,493	$13,155
Herbert Hoover Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1355 Barrington Rd	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1110	464	36	12.8	46.6%	202 (43.5%)	75 (16.2%)	152 (32.8%)	14 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (4.5%)	41.5	393^rd of 576 public elementary schools	31.8%		55.5	297^th of 557 public elementary schools	46.7%	96	69.2	77.1	70.9	69.2	62.7	60.0	61.8
Longfellow Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1130 Seymour Ave	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1135	325	30	10.8	53.5%	143 (44.0%)	86 (26.5%)	66 (20.3%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (8.0%)	35.1	435^th of 576 public elementary schools	24.5%		37	401^st of 557 public elementary schools	28.0%	34	59.6	82.5	61.3	55.3	71.9	58.1	58.1	$13,112	$279	$12,833
Mark Twain Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1355 DeForest Avenue	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1165	213	22	9.6	66.7%	75 (35.2%)	76 (35.7%)	49 (23.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (5.2%)	14.9	509^th of 576 public elementary schools	11.6%		23.3	462^nd of 557 public elementary schools	17.1%	47	52.0	66.7	60.0	60.0	54.2	35.0	40.0	$15,834	$1,165	$14,669
Horace Mann Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	521 N Dodge St	Iowa City	52245	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1145	207	18	11.4	33.8%	123 (59.4%)	49 (23.7%)	19 (9.2%)	5 (2.4%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (4.8%)	56.6	280^th of 576 public elementary schools	51.4%		49.5	333^rd of 557 public elementary schools	40.2%	53	81.5	74.3	74.1	77.8	60.0	74.1	81.5	$16,025	$649	$15,377
Grant Wood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1930 Lakeside Dr	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1180	306	28	10.8	68.0%	61 (19.9%)	153 (50.0%)	70 (22.9%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	17 (5.6%)	11.6	522^nd of 576 public elementary schools	9.4%		7.9	520^th of 557 public elementary schools	6.6%	2	56.8	64.9	43.2	43.2	59.5	45.5	40.9	$15,646	$1,067	$14,579
Bohumil Shimek Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1400 Grissel Place	Iowa City	52245	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1160	181	16	11.3	18.8%	124 (68.5%)	23 (12.7%)	10 (5.5%)	10 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (7.7%)	65.7	214^th of 576 public elementary schools	62.8%		75.1	111^th of 557 public elementary schools	80.1%	103	87.1	78.3	38.9	96.8	91.3	73.7	55.6	$14,044	$230	$13,813
Alexander Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3571 Sycamore St.	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1095	436	38	11.3	75.9%	98 (22.5%)	170 (39.0%)	139 (31.9%)	6 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	22 (5.0%)	11.4	523^rd of 576 public elementary schools	9.2%		17.1	482^nd of 557 public elementary schools	13.5%	41	53.7	63.0	46.6	59.7	47.8	48.3	41.4	$15,246	$1,427	$13,819
Lincoln Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	300 Teeters Court	Iowa City	52246	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1130	217	15	14.4	35.9%	119 (54.8%)	44 (20.3%)	15 (6.9%)	23 (10.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.9%)	14 (6.5%)	76.7	110^th of 576 public elementary schools	80.9%		75.9	105^th of 557 public elementary schools	81.1%	5	69.4	85.3	84.6	86.1	85.3	88.5	80.8	$13,259	$202	$13,057

Frequently Asked Questions about Helen Lemme Elementary School

How many students attend Helen Lemme Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 340 students attended Helen Lemme Elementary School.

What district is Helen Lemme Elementary School in?

Iowa City Community School District

Is Helen Lemme Elementary School a good school?

Helen Lemme Elementary School ranks 428^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Helen Lemme Elementary School?

Students at Helen Lemme Elementary School are 61% White, 18% Hispanic, 15% African American, 5% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Helen Lemme Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Helen Lemme Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Southeast Middle School
High : Iowa City High 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.