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James Van Allen Elementary School

Q: Is James Van Allen Elementary School a good school?

James Van Allen Elementary School ranks 294 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

294^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 49% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

James Van Allen Elementary School is a public elementary school in North Liberty, Iowa, serving 427 students in grades PK-6 as part of the Iowa City Community School District. The school consistently outperforms the district and state averages on standardized tests, with 73.3% of 3rd graders proficient or better in English Language Arts and 75% proficient or better in Mathematics, compared to 67.4% and 71.4% for the district, respectively.

However, the school has seen an increase in chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 12.5% to 27.9% over the past few years, which is an area of concern. Additionally, the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch has risen from 24.62% in 2021-2022 to 31.15% in 2023-2024, indicating a growing population of students from lower-income families. While James Van Allen Elementary outperforms many nearby schools in the district, such as Central Elementary, Norman Borlaug Elementary, and Kirkwood Elementary, it lags behind high-performing schools like Wickham Elementary and Penn Elementary.

Over the past few years, James Van Allen Elementary's statewide ranking has declined from 98th out of 567 Iowa elementary schools in 2017-2018 to 294th out of 576 in 2024-2025, a concerning trend that the school and district should investigate and address. However, the school maintains a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 14.2 to 16 students per teacher, which may contribute to its strong academic performance.

376

Students ?

14.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,084

Per pupil spending ?

30.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

170 Abigail Ave
North Liberty, IA 52317

(319) 688-1185

District: Iowa City Community School District

Students who attend James Van Allen Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	North Central Middle School
High:	Liberty High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

59.6%

Hispanic:

15.4%

African American:

13.0%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare James Van Allen Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 37th percentile in 2022 → 49th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 49th (2025) from a 37th-percentile low (2022)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school73%

District avg68%

Iowa avg71%

294^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 49%▼ down 36 pts since 2015

From top 15% (2015) to bottom 49% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^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	54.6	294 of 576	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	47.2	349 of 557	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	53.4	302 of 565	46.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	44.7	363 of 574	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	59.5	244 of 567	57.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	74.3	141 of 603	76.6%	★★★★☆
2018	76.5	98 of 567	82.7%	★★★★☆
2017	63.2	242 of 574	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2016	72.3	143 of 599	76.1%	★★★★☆
2015	77.1	95 of 616	84.6%	★★★★☆
2014	60.8	267 of 603	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2013	62.9	244 of 624	60.9%	★★★☆☆
2012	53.1	358 of 626	42.8%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts75%+4 vs state

Mathematics71%-3 vs state

Science69%+5 vs state

★

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Schools Near James Van Allen 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
James Van Allen Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	170 Abigail Ave	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1185	376	26	14.6	30.3%	224 (59.6%)	49 (13.0%)	58 (15.4%)	25 (6.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.1%)	54.6	294^th of 576 public elementary schools	49.0%		47.2	349^th of 557 public elementary schools	37.3%	55	73.3	74.6	77.4	75.0	72.9	66.1	69.4	$12,084	$214	$11,870
Buford Garner Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	80 Birch Street	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1190	344	25	13.5	31.1%	209 (60.8%)	46 (13.4%)	40 (11.6%)	5 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.9%)	41 (11.9%)	45.2	367^th of 576 public elementary schools	36.3%		48.9	343^rd of 557 public elementary schools	38.4%	24	63.8	77.4	59.0	75.9	75.5	67.2	63.9	$12,209	$291	$11,917
Penn Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	230 N Dubuque St	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1150	512	33	15.4	13.3%	387 (75.6%)	43 (8.4%)	43 (8.4%)	12 (2.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.1%)	80.2	73^rd of 576 public elementary schools	87.3%		75.9	103^rd of 557 public elementary schools	81.5%	30	83.9	95.8	81.9	88.5	90.1	75.3	73.6	$12,509	$453	$12,055
Wickham Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	601 Oakdale Blvd	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1175	315	21	15.2	19.7%	182 (57.8%)	34 (10.8%)	17 (5.4%)	63 (20.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (6.0%)	92.8	6^th of 576 public elementary schools	99.0%		92.4	6^th of 557 public elementary schools	98.9%		91.4	100.0	89.7	94.3	93.6	94.9	87.2	$12,974	$451	$12,524
East Ridge Elementary	Public	4-5	2950 Crossing Ridge Dr	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 545-2075	442	29	15.4	32.4%	309 (69.9%)	46 (10.4%)	45 (10.2%)	14 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (6.3%)	68.4	187^th of 576 public elementary schools	67.5%		58.8	264^th of 557 public elementary schools	52.6%	77		84.5	77.8		80.3	75.7	70.8
Christine Grant Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1000 North Bend Drive	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1500	426	32	13.2	18.5%	321 (75.4%)	51 (12.0%)	24 (5.6%)	6 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.6%)	67.7	195^th of 576 public elementary schools	66.1%		64.8	201^st of 557 public elementary schools	63.9%	6	78.7	82.1	75.0	85.2	75.6	81.9	68.1
North Bend Elementary	Public	K-3	2230 St Andrews Drive	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 626-3950	326	25	13.0	30.4%	197 (60.4%)	58 (17.8%)	26 (8.0%)	8 (2.5%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	34 (10.4%)								(n/a)	77.2			84.8				$26,848	$381	$26,466
Oak Hill Elementary	Public	2-3	504 N Park Road	Tiffin	52340	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(319) 545-2248	173	13	13.4	30.6%	114 (65.9%)	19 (11.0%)	23 (13.3%)	6 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (6.4%)								(n/a)
Tiffin Elementary	Public	K-1	104 N. Park Rd	Tiffin	52340	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 545-2081	191	18	10.6	37.2%	107 (56.0%)	34 (17.8%)	22 (11.5%)	13 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (7.9%)								(n/a)								$27,228	$701	$26,527
Kirkwood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1401 9th St	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1120	270	27	9.9	69.6%	62 (23.0%)	135 (50.0%)	47 (17.4%)	7 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.0%)	7.7	538^th of 576 public elementary schools	6.6%		18.4	477^th of 557 public elementary schools	14.4%	61	33.3	66.7	40.5	36.7	60.6	37.8	32.4	$15,376	$1,350	$14,026

Frequently Asked Questions about James Van Allen Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of James Van Allen Elementary School?

Students at James Van Allen Elementary School are 60% White, 15% Hispanic, 13% African American, 7% Asian, 5% Two or more races.

What district is James Van Allen Elementary School in?

Iowa City Community School District

Is James Van Allen Elementary School a good school?

James Van Allen Elementary School ranks 294^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of James Van Allen Elementary School attend?

Students who attend James Van Allen Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : North Central Middle School
High : Liberty High School

How many students attend James Van Allen Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 376 students attended James Van Allen Elementary School.

Rate James Van Allen 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.