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Willowbrook Elementary

Q: Is Willowbrook Elementary a good school?

Willowbrook Elementary ranks 407 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

407^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 29% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Willowbrook Elementary is a public elementary school located in Altoona, Iowa, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 546 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.

Willowbrook Elementary has seen a decline in its statewide ranking over the past several years, dropping from 198 out of 603 Iowa elementary schools in 2018-2019 to 407 out of 576 in 2024-2025. Its SchoolDigger star rating has also decreased from 3 stars to 1 star during this time period. The school faces several challenges compared to its nearby counterparts, such as Delaware Elementary and Clay Elementary, including lower test scores, higher chronic absenteeism rates, and a higher percentage of students from low-income families.

Willowbrook Elementary's test scores in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are generally lower than the Southeast Polk Community School District and the state of Iowa averages. Additionally, the school has consistently high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 16.9% to 24.4% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average and the rates of nearby schools. The school's spending per student is also lower than the spending at nearby schools, and it has a relatively high student-teacher ratio compared to its neighbors.

523

Students ?

13.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,785

Per pupil spending ?

53%

Free/discounted lunch ?

300 17th Ave SW
Altoona, IA 50009

(515) 967-7512

District: Southeast Polk Community School District

Students who attend Willowbrook Elementary usually attend:

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

Racial breakdown:

White:

63.9%

African American:

11.9%

Hispanic:

10.9%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Willowbrook Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 66th percentile in 2015 → 29th in 2025

Worth a look

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

!Ranking has slipped — down 37 percentile points since 2015

!Science scores 12 pts below the Iowa average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school66%

District avg77%

Iowa avg71%

407^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 29%▼ down 37 pts since 2015

From top 34% (2015) to bottom 29% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

8^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	38.9	407 of 576	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	35.2	413 of 557	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	44.2	371 of 565	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	52.0	314 of 574	45.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	56.0	277 of 567	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	67.3	198 of 603	67.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.2	264 of 567	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2017	56.4	300 of 574	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	54.4	331 of 599	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2015	68.4	207 of 616	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2014	65.6	223 of 603	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2013	64.3	227 of 624	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2012	67.9	174 of 626	72.2%	★★★★☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts69%-3 vs state

Mathematics68%-6 vs state

Science52%-12 vs state

★

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Schools Near Willowbrook 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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Anderson Elementary School	Public	2-4	400 Garfield St. SW	Bondurant	50035	Polk County	Bondurant-Farrar Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 967-7494	531	34	15.5	22.4%	428 (80.6%)	20 (3.8%)	49 (9.2%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.8%)	26 (4.9%)	68.8	184^th of 576 public elementary schools	68.1%		61	241^st of 557 public elementary schools	56.7%	57	75.5	85.7		82.5	77.1			$9,609	$215	$9,394
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
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

Frequently Asked Questions about Willowbrook Elementary

How many students attend Willowbrook Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 523 students attended Willowbrook Elementary.

What district is Willowbrook Elementary in?

Southeast Polk Community School District

What is the racial makeup of Willowbrook Elementary?

Students at Willowbrook Elementary are 64% White, 12% African American, 11% Hispanic, 10% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

Is Willowbrook Elementary a good school?

Willowbrook Elementary ranks 407^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Willowbrook Elementary attend?

Students who attend Willowbrook 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.