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Clay Elementary

Q: Is Clay Elementary a good school?

Clay Elementary ranks 343 rd of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

343^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 40% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Clay Elementary is a public elementary school located in Altoona, Iowa, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 670 students. It is part of the Southeast Polk Community School District, which is ranked 121 out of 313 school districts in Iowa and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Clay Elementary has seen fluctuations in its statewide ranking over the years, ranging from 120th to 407th out of over 500 Iowa elementary schools, and its SchoolDigger rating has also varied, ranging from 2 to 4 stars out of 5. The school has relatively high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 17.4% to 24.4% in recent years, which is higher than the state average and the rates of some nearby schools like Four Mile Elementary and Centennial Elementary. In general, Clay Elementary's test scores in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are slightly below the Southeast Polk Community School District and the state of Iowa averages, though there are some grade levels and subject areas where the school performs better.

The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch at Clay Elementary has increased from 25.16% in 2021-2022 to 33.58% in 2023-2024, which is higher than some nearby schools like Centennial Elementary (37.41%) but lower than others like Altoona Elementary (53.19%) and Willowbrook Elementary (52.38%). Additionally, Clay Elementary's spending per student for the 2018-2019 school year was $12,723, which is lower than the spending at nearby schools like Delaware Elementary ($15,865) and Centennial Elementary ($15,221).

700

Students ?

16.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,723

Per pupil spending ?

36.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3200 First Avenue S.
Altoona, IA 50009

(515) 967-4198

District: Southeast Polk Community School District

Students who attend Clay Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Southeast Polk Middle School
High:	Southeast Polk High School
Alternative:	Southeast Polk Junior High

Racial breakdown:

White:

60.4%

Hispanic:

14.9%

African American:

14.0%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Clay Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 69th percentile in 2015 → 40th in 2025

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 29 percentile points since 2015

!Near the bottom of Southeast Polk Community School District's ranking

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school70%

District avg77%

Iowa avg71%

343^rd of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 40%▼ down 29 pts since 2015

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

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

7^th of 8Elementary Schools in the Southeast Polk Community School District

121^st of 313Southeast Polk 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	48.0	343 of 576	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	61.0	242 of 557	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	61.2	231 of 565	59.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	74.7	120 of 574	79.1%	★★★★☆
2021	71.2	147 of 567	74.1%	★★★★☆
2019	67.5	196 of 603	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	68.3	178 of 567	68.6%	★★★☆☆
2017	68.3	198 of 574	65.5%	★★★☆☆
2016	67.5	209 of 599	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2015	69.5	191 of 616	69.0%	★★★☆☆
2014	74.7	108 of 603	82.1%	★★★★☆
2013	71.7	133 of 624	78.7%	★★★★☆
2012	59.1	285 of 626	54.5%	★★★☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts71%~ state avg

Mathematics70%-4 vs state

Science66%~ state avg

5.0

1 rating

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★0

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Schools Near Clay Elementary

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
Clay Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3200 First Avenue S.	Altoona	50009	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 967-4198	700	43	16.4	36.1%	423 (60.4%)	98 (14.0%)	104 (14.9%)	22 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (7.6%)	48	343^rd of 576 public elementary schools	40.5%		61	242^nd of 557 public elementary schools	56.6%	101	68.3	77.7	68.3	74.0	73.8	61.0	66.3	$12,723	$186	$12,537
Centennial Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	910 7th Ave SE	Altoona	50009	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 967-2109	423	32	13.1	38.1%	303 (71.6%)	36 (8.5%)	42 (9.9%)	5 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (8.7%)	71.2	155^th of 576 public elementary schools	73.1%		77.2	86^th of 557 public elementary schools	84.6%	69	81.5	78.7	72.9	87.7	85.2	87.1	65.7	$15,221	$767	$14,454
Altoona Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	301 6th St SW	Altoona	50009	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 967-3771	429	35	12.2	53.4%	277 (64.6%)	66 (15.4%)	45 (10.5%)	9 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	29 (6.8%)	63.5	231^st of 576 public elementary schools	59.9%		73.5	122^nd of 557 public elementary schools	78.1%	109	66.7	78.4	85.3	78.5	80.4	83.8	61.8	$14,305	$587	$13,718
Willowbrook Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	300 17th Ave SW	Altoona	50009	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 967-7512	523	39	13.3	53.0%	334 (63.9%)	62 (11.9%)	57 (10.9%)	14 (2.7%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.6%)	52 (9.9%)	38.9	407^th of 576 public elementary schools	29.3%		35.2	413^th of 557 public elementary schools	25.9%	6	68.8	75.3	61.6	80.5	67.9	53.4	52.1	$13,785	$487	$13,298
Four Mile Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	670 SE 68th St	Pleasant Hill	50327	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 265-1972	495	36	13.8	37.8%	345 (69.7%)	23 (4.6%)	66 (13.3%)	27 (5.5%)	1 (0.2%)	9 (1.8%)	24 (4.8%)	71.2	157^th of 576 public elementary schools	72.7%		69.2	169^th of 557 public elementary schools	69.7%	12	69.3	88.9	76.0	76.0	91.4	84.0	72.0	$13,837	$290	$13,547
Delaware Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	4401 E 46th St	Des Moines	50317	Polk County	Southeast Polk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 262-3197	440	36	12.1	45.9%	267 (60.7%)	63 (14.3%)	57 (13.0%)	25 (5.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	26 (5.9%)	65.6	215^th of 576 public elementary schools	62.7%		72.2	138^th of 557 public elementary schools	75.2%	77	83.6	87.1	72.9	86.6	83.9	64.3	64.3	$15,865	$1,352	$14,513
Brubaker Elementary School	Public	K-5	2900 E 42nd Street	Des Moines	50317	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8405	622	52	12.0	83.3%	228 (36.7%)	127 (20.4%)	185 (29.7%)	26 (4.2%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.6%)	51 (8.2%)	3.9	560^th of 576 public elementary schools	2.8%		2.6	547^th of 557 public elementary schools	1.8%	13	47.6	48.0	41.9	42.9	48.0	38.1	33.7	$16,004	$1,458	$14,547
Pleasant Hill Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4801 E Oakwood Dr	Des Moines	50327	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-8432	241	20	11.8	68.9%	137 (56.8%)	25 (10.4%)	61 (25.3%)	6 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (5.0%)	24.5	477^th of 576 public elementary schools	17.2%		39.5	389^th of 557 public elementary schools	30.2%	88	58.3	67.7	60.0	66.7	64.5	56.0	44.0	$15,655	$628	$15,027
Stowe Elementary School	Public	K-5	1411 E 33rd St	Des Moines	50317	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8435	297	25	12.0	84.2%	96 (32.3%)	49 (16.5%)	124 (41.8%)	9 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	17 (5.7%)	4	558^th of 576 public elementary schools	3.1%		2	548^th of 557 public elementary schools	1.6%	10	46.9	36.4	50.0	44.9	24.2	35.3	32.4	$17,791	$1,908	$15,883
Morris Elementary	Public	PK, KG-2	600 Garfield St. SW	Bondurant	50035	Polk County	Bondurant-Farrar Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 967-6361	601	42	14.3	13.6%	481 (80.0%)	29 (4.8%)	53 (8.8%)	8 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (5.0%)								(n/a)								$9,744	$410	$9,334

Frequently Asked Questions about Clay Elementary

What district is Clay Elementary in?

Southeast Polk Community School District

Is Clay Elementary a good school?

Clay Elementary ranks 343^rd of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Clay Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 700 students attended Clay Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Clay Elementary?

Students at Clay Elementary are 60% White, 15% Hispanic, 14% African American, 8% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Clay Elementary attend?

Students who attend Clay Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Southeast Polk Middle School
High : Southeast Polk High School
Alternative : Southeast Polk Junior High

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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.