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Walnut Creek Campus

Public Grades 9-12

334^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 340 Iowa High Schools

Better than 2% of Iowa high schools

Summary

Walnut Creek Campus is a public high school located in West Des Moines, Iowa, serving grades 9-12 with a total enrollment of 165 students. Despite its relatively high per-student spending and low student-teacher ratio, the school consistently ranks in the bottom 10% of Iowa high schools and struggles with academic performance, graduation rates, and high chronic absenteeism.

Walnut Creek Campus has significantly lower proficiency rates on standardized tests compared to the district and state averages. For example, in 2024-2025, only 23.1% of 9th-grade students were proficient in Math, compared to 70% for the West Des Moines Community School District and 65.6% for the state. The school's four-year graduation rate has ranged from 53.3% to 89.6% in recent years, which is generally lower than the state and district averages. Additionally, Walnut Creek Campus has experienced high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 19.7% to 88.6% in recent years.

When compared to other high schools in the area, Walnut Creek Campus performs significantly worse than its peers. For instance, Valley High School, another school in the West Des Moines Community School District, consistently ranks in the top half of Iowa high schools and has much higher academic proficiency rates. Similarly, Urbandale High School, which is in a different district, outperforms Walnut Creek Campus across all academic metrics and has a much higher statewide ranking.

152

Students ?

10.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,513

Per pupil spending ?

76.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1020 8th Street
West Des Moines, IA 50265

(515) 633-6480

District: West Des Moines Community School District

Racial breakdown:

White:

50.0%

African American:

19.7%

Hispanic:

18.4%

See top rated Iowa high schools

Compare Walnut Creek Campus to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 4th percentile in 2015 → 2nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (27% vs 69% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (2nd percentile)

!Graduation rate below the Iowa average (53% vs 88%)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school27%

District avg67%

Iowa avg69%

334^th of 340

Iowa public high schools ?

Bottom 2%▼ down 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Iowa High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2High Schools in the West Des Moines Community School District

216^th of 313West Des Moines 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	0.6	334 of 340	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.2	328 of 338	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.0	325 of 336	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	4.6	322 of 332	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	0.2	323 of 327	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	0.3	322 of 327	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	0.0	317 of 320	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	0.7	317 of 325	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	5.4	309 of 320	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	3.6	311 of 324	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	1.6	313 of 322	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	5.6	341 of 351	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	0.9	341 of 351	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts34%-39 vs state

Science26%-41 vs state

Mathematics21%-46 vs state

★

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Schools Near Walnut Creek Campus

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 9th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 10th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 11th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 9th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 10th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 11th Grade	ISASP Science 10th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Walnut Creek Campus	Public	9-12	1020 8th Street	West Des Moines	50265	Polk County	West Des Moines Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 633-6480	152	14	10.8	76.3%	76 (50.0%)	30 (19.7%)	28 (18.4%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (11.2%)	0.6	334^th of 340 public high schools	1.8%		1.2	328^th of 338 public high schools	3.0%	6	23.1	34.8	41.2	7.7	26.1	23.5	26.1	$18,513	$197	$18,315
Roosevelt High School	Public	9-12	4419 Center St	Des Moines	50312	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-7272	2,051	66	31.2	55.2%	850 (41.4%)	562 (27.4%)	364 (17.7%)	64 (3.1%)	9 (0.4%)	7 (0.3%)	178 (8.7%)	31.5	269^th of 340 public high schools	20.9%		22.5	290^th of 338 public high schools	14.2%	21	71.0	67.5	61.6	58.8	65.4	54.1	60.7	$14,829	$690	$14,140
Valley High School	Public	10-12	3650 Woodland Ave	West Des Moines	50266	Polk County	West Des Moines Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 633-4000	2,178	119	18.3	68.0%	1,195 (54.9%)	258 (11.8%)	442 (20.3%)	132 (6.1%)	2 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	147 (6.7%)	37.9	254^th of 340 public high schools	25.3%		46.7	212^th of 338 public high schools	37.3%	42		73.2	61.0		64.9	62.7	61.1	$15,551	$791	$14,760
Urbandale High School	Public	9-12	7111 Aurora Avenue	Urbandale	50322	Polk County	Urbandale Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 457-6800	1,301	88	14.7	36.4%	817 (62.8%)	117 (9.0%)	205 (15.8%)	88 (6.8%)	4 (0.3%)	2 (0.2%)	68 (5.2%)	61.2	150^th of 340 public high schools	55.9%		34.3	263^rd of 338 public high schools	22.2%	113	83.2	82.0	80.4	63.3	68.1	71.0	71.8	$11,428	$388	$11,040
Virtual Campus	Public, Virtual	9-12	1800 Grand Avenue	Des Moines	50309	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	Yes	No	(515) 242-8502	380	16	23.9	69.5%	178 (46.8%)	51 (13.4%)	103 (27.1%)	11 (2.9%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (8.9%)	2.8	327^th of 340 public high schools	3.8%		8.9	314^th of 338 public high schools	7.1%	13	51.4	53.9	45.7	21.6	27.0	28.4	37.9
Hoover High School	Public	9-12	4800 Aurora Ave	Des Moines	50310	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-7300	898	44	20.5	80.0%	150 (16.7%)	329 (36.6%)	229 (25.5%)	134 (14.9%)	4 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	48 (5.3%)	5.7	319^th of 340 public high schools	6.2%		4.8	321^st of 338 public high schools	5.0%	2	51.8	51.2	49.7	43.0	45.1	39.5	39.9	$17,790	$689	$17,101
Lincoln High School	Public	9-12	2600 SW 9th St	Des Moines	50315	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-7500	2,364	94	25.1	74.9%	717 (30.3%)	402 (17.0%)	903 (38.2%)	195 (8.2%)	10 (0.4%)	2 (0.1%)	130 (5.5%)	4.1	322^nd of 340 public high schools	5.3%		2.7	324^th of 338 public high schools	4.1%	2	54.5	47.9	43.5	40.5	42.1	37.9	38.9	$14,888	$697	$14,190
North High School	Public	9-12	501 Holcomb Ave	Des Moines	50313	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-7200	1,428	66	21.4	84.0%	278 (19.5%)	342 (23.9%)	553 (38.7%)	155 (10.9%)	12 (0.8%)	4 (0.3%)	84 (5.9%)	2.8	326^th of 340 public high schools	4.1%		2.2	325^th of 338 public high schools	3.8%	1	48.0	48.8	38.5	33.5	39.2	34.8	42.1	$15,636	$747	$14,889
Great Oaks High School and Career Center	Public, Charter	9-12	100 East Euclid	Des Moines	50313	Polk County	Charter Organization: Oakmont Education	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(319) 321-9976	72	3	24.1	4.2%	23 (31.9%)	27 (37.5%)	21 (29.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)			25.0			14.3
East High School	Public	9-12	815 E 13th St	Des Moines	50316	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 242-7788	1,952	89	21.8	78.4%	484 (24.8%)	334 (17.1%)	890 (45.6%)	130 (6.7%)	12 (0.6%)	5 (0.3%)	94 (4.8%)	2.6	328^th of 340 public high schools	3.5%		2.1	326^th of 338 public high schools	3.6%	2	45.1	48.6	42.5	36.0	41.2	29.7	37.6	$14,908	$672	$14,236

Frequently Asked Questions about Walnut Creek Campus

What is the racial makeup of Walnut Creek Campus?

Students at Walnut Creek Campus are 50% White, 20% African American, 18% Hispanic, 11% Two or more races.

How many students attend Walnut Creek Campus?

In the 2024-25 school year, 152 students attended Walnut Creek Campus.

Is Walnut Creek Campus a good school?

Walnut Creek Campus ranks in the bottom 1.8% of Iowa high schools.

What district is Walnut Creek Campus in?

West Des Moines 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.