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Rock Creek Elementary

Q: Is Rock Creek Elementary a good school?

Rock Creek Elementary ranks 186 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

186^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 68% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Rock Creek Elementary is a public elementary school in Ankeny, Iowa, serving 733 students from kindergarten to 5th grade. It is part of the Ankeny Community School District, which is ranked 62 out of 313 school districts in the state and has a 4-star rating.

Rock Creek Elementary consistently outperforms the state and district averages in standardized test scores, with proficiency rates significantly higher than the state and district levels in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science. However, the school has experienced a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism rates, rising from 11.1% in 2021-2022 to 23.4% in 2022-2023. Additionally, the school's ranking has declined from 45th out of 567 Iowa elementary schools in 2020-2021 to 186th out of 576 in 2024-2025, with a 3-star rating.

Compared to nearby schools, Prairie Trail Elementary outperforms Rock Creek Elementary in test scores and state rankings, but Rock Creek's performance is still impressive as it consistently ranks among the top schools in Iowa. The relatively low percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch at Rock Creek Elementary suggests the school serves a population with a higher socioeconomic status, which could be a contributing factor to its strong academic performance.

639

Students ?

15.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,986

Per pupil spending ?

26.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3800 NW Abilene Rd
Ankeny, IA 50023

(515) 965-9629

District: Ankeny Community School District

Students who attend Rock Creek Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Prairie Ridge Middle School
High:	Ankeny Centennial High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

71.2%

African American:

11.6%

Hispanic:

7.5%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Rock Creek Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 94th percentile in 2016 → 68th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Iowa average (78% vs 71% meeting standards)

✓Above the Iowa median (68th percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 26 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school78%

District avg81%

Iowa avg71%

186^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Top 32%▼ down 26 pts since 2016

From top 6% (2016) to top 32% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 9Elementary Schools in the Ankeny Community School District

62^nd of 313Ankeny 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	68.5	186 of 576	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	75.9	104 of 557	81.3%	★★★★☆
2023	79.1	87 of 565	84.6%	★★★★☆
2022	80.8	75 of 574	86.9%	★★★★☆
2021	85.2	45 of 567	92.1%	★★★★★
2019	82.6	74 of 603	87.7%	★★★★☆
2018	89.2	13 of 567	97.7%	★★★★★
2017	91.6	3 of 574	99.5%	★★★★★
2016	84.4	38 of 599	93.7%	★★★★★

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics82%+8 vs state

English Language Arts78%+6 vs state

Science70%+6 vs state

3.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, June 27, 2019

Great school, great teachers. My kids love going to Rock Creek. Close Quote

by a parent
Monday, April 10, 2017

Awful! So many problems with this school. Pick another in Ankeny. Close Quote

Schools Near Rock Creek Elementary

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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
Rock Creek Elementary	Public	K-5	3800 NW Abilene Rd	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9629	639	42	15.2	26.4%	455 (71.2%)	74 (11.6%)	48 (7.5%)	23 (3.6%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	36 (5.6%)	68.5	186^th of 576 public elementary schools	67.7%		75.9	104^th of 557 public elementary schools	81.3%	82	79.4	81.4	72.6	88.7	84.5	73.2	69.9	$11,986	$349	$11,637
Ashland Ridge Elementary	Public	K-5	2600 NW Ash Drive	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9594	548	35	15.6	14.1%	427 (77.9%)	29 (5.3%)	39 (7.1%)	25 (4.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (5.1%)	78.5	88^th of 576 public elementary schools	84.7%		81.2	61^st of 557 public elementary schools	89.0%	27	76.8	95.9	81.3	81.1	88.7	83.5	74.7	$11,160	$239	$10,921
Westwood Elementary School	Public	K-5	2920 NW 9th St	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9690	551	35	15.7	17.6%	433 (78.6%)	22 (4.0%)	52 (9.4%)	8 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (6.5%)	79.3	81^st of 576 public elementary schools	85.9%		82.5	57^th of 557 public elementary schools	89.8%	24	83.7	90.4	83.3	84.6	90.4	82.2	70.0	$11,911	$384	$11,527
Abbie Grove Elementary	Public	K-5	5001 NW 18th St	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(515) 965-4815	445	26	17.1	11.5%	375 (84.3%)	13 (2.9%)	17 (3.8%)	10 (2.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (6.5%)								(n/a)
Northwest Elementary School	Public	K-5	1202 W First St	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 965-9680	346	27	12.8	37.3%	224 (64.7%)	20 (5.8%)	56 (16.2%)	5 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (11.8%)	48.6	338^th of 576 public elementary schools	41.3%		55.1	298^th of 557 public elementary schools	46.5%	40	58.0	73.1	72.3	68.0	75.0	73.8	67.7	$12,743	$644	$12,099
Northeast Elementary	Public	K-5	1705 NE Trilein Dr	Ankeny	50021	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9620	595	38	15.6	12.6%	484 (81.3%)	17 (2.9%)	28 (4.7%)	30 (5.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (6.1%)	82.4	52^nd of 576 public elementary schools	91.0%		83.7	48^th of 557 public elementary schools	91.4%	4	80.4	90.3	85.2	87.6	84.1	86.1	80.6	$11,723	$246	$11,477
East Elementary School	Public	K-5	710 SE 3rd St	Ankeny	50021	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 965-9660	409	29	14.1	46.2%	280 (68.5%)	33 (8.1%)	42 (10.3%)	15 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (9.5%)	56.2	283^rd of 576 public elementary schools	50.9%		53.1	311^th of 557 public elementary schools	44.2%	28	77.6	72.4	75.4	79.1	72.4	76.9	58.5	$11,901	$351	$11,551
Prairie Trail Elementary	Public	K-5	1850 SW College Ave	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9605	526	32	16.4	5.9%	438 (83.3%)	4 (0.8%)	39 (7.4%)	12 (2.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (6.1%)	90.9	13^th of 576 public elementary schools	97.7%		91.2	8^th of 557 public elementary schools	98.6%	5	85.1	96.1	90.5	90.4	96.1	92.6	89.5	$11,662	$230	$11,432
Southeast Elementary School	Public	K-5	1005 SE Trilein Dr	Ankeny	50021	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 965-9650	585	40	14.5	33.0%	397 (67.9%)	57 (9.7%)	58 (9.9%)	24 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	47 (8.0%)	58	277^th of 576 public elementary schools	51.9%		60.4	251^st of 557 public elementary schools	54.9%	26	80.0	81.1	66.7	78.9	78.3	76.0	56.3	$11,914	$404	$11,509
Heritage Elementary	Public	K-5	301 SW Prairie Trail Pky	Ankeny	50023	Polk County	Ankeny Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 965-9645	604	38	15.8	33.9%	414 (68.5%)	36 (6.0%)	89 (14.7%)	30 (5.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (5.6%)	67.8	194^th of 576 public elementary schools	66.3%		62.6	224^th of 557 public elementary schools	59.8%	30	69.1	87.6	80.4	76.3	85.4	82.6	65.9

Frequently Asked Questions about Rock Creek Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Rock Creek Elementary?

Students at Rock Creek Elementary are 71% White, 12% African American, 8% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

Is Rock Creek Elementary a good school?

Rock Creek Elementary ranks 186^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Rock Creek Elementary attend?

Students who attend Rock Creek Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Prairie Ridge Middle School
High : Ankeny Centennial High School

What district is Rock Creek Elementary in?

Ankeny Community School District

How many students attend Rock Creek Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 639 students attended Rock Creek Elementary.

Rate Rock Creek Elementary!

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Latest Iowa data All new data »

2024–25 graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 ISASP test scoresAug 20, 2025

2023–24 graduation ratesApr 1, 2025

2017–18 through 2023–24 attendance dataNov 15, 2024

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.