Dubuque Online School

Dubuque Online School is a public virtual high school serving grades 6-12 in the Dubuque Community School District, with 242 students, significantly smaller than the nearby traditional high schools of Hempstead High School (1,549 students) and Dubuque Senior High School (1,466 students).

Dubuque Online School significantly underperforms compared to the Dubuque Community School District and the state of Iowa on standardized test scores, with proficiency rates ranging from 25.9% to 64.3% across different grade levels and subjects, compared to district rates of 59% to 73.2% and state rates of 65.6% to 80.2%. The school also has lower four-year graduation rates, ranging from 65.3% to 88.3% in recent years, compared to the district's consistent 88.3% rate. Additionally, Dubuque Online School has much higher chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 21.6% to 53.3%, compared to the district average of 21.6%.

Interestingly, Dubuque Online School has a significantly lower percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 5.37% to 23.56%, compared to the nearby traditional high schools which have rates around 36-37%. The school also has a higher student-teacher ratio, ranging from 21.8 to 41.6, compared to the nearby traditional high schools which have ratios around 11.2 to 16. These differences suggest that the virtual school may be serving a different demographic of students and facing unique challenges in resource allocation and staffing models.