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Buford Garner Elementary

Q: Is Buford Garner Elementary a good school?

Buford Garner Elementary ranks 367 th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

367^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 36% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Buford Garner Elementary is a public elementary school located in North Liberty, Iowa, serving grades PK-6 with a student population of 449. It is part of the Iowa City Community School District, which is ranked 241 out of 313 districts in Iowa and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Buford Garner Elementary's academic performance, as measured by the percentage of students proficient or better in ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) tests, is generally below the Iowa City Community School District and state averages across various grade levels and subjects. For example, in 2024-2025, Buford Garner's 3rd grade English Language Arts proficiency (63.8%) was lower than the district (67.4%) and state (67.9%) averages. Similarly, its 5th grade Math proficiency (67.2%) was lower than the district (65.7%) and state (71.5%) averages. Compared to nearby schools, Buford Garner's performance is mixed, as it generally outperforms Central Elementary and Kirkwood Elementary, but lags behind higher-performing schools like Wickham Elementary and Penn Elementary.

Buford Garner Elementary has experienced relatively high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 19.9% to 27.9% in recent years, which is higher than the state average. This is a concern, as chronic absenteeism can negatively impact student learning and academic achievement. Additionally, Buford Garner has a relatively high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 33.97% to 39.96% in recent years, suggesting a higher proportion of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, which can be a factor in academic performance.

344

Students ?

13.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,209

Per pupil spending ?

31.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

80 Birch Street
North Liberty, IA 52317

(319) 688-1190

District: Iowa City Community School District

Students who attend Buford Garner Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	North Central Middle School
High:	Liberty High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

60.8%

African American:

13.4%

Two or more races:

11.9%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Buford Garner Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 58th percentile in 2015 → 36th in 2025

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 22 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school69%

District avg68%

Iowa avg71%

367^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 36%▼ down 22 pts since 2015

From top 42% (2015) to bottom 36% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

7^th of 18Elementary Schools in the Iowa City Community School District

241^st of 313Iowa City 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	45.2	367 of 576	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	48.9	343 of 557	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	48.9	333 of 565	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	50.7	327 of 574	43.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	55.9	278 of 567	51.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	65.8	207 of 603	65.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	67.5	189 of 567	66.7%	★★★☆☆
2017	58.7	281 of 574	51.0%	★★★☆☆
2016	59.3	289 of 599	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	63.4	257 of 616	58.3%	★★★☆☆
2014	57.8	303 of 603	49.8%	★★★☆☆
2013	55.9	324 of 624	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2012	46.6	410 of 626	34.5%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics73%~ state avg

English Language Arts66%-5 vs state

Science64%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Buford Garner 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
Buford Garner Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	80 Birch Street	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1190	344	25	13.5	31.1%	209 (60.8%)	46 (13.4%)	40 (11.6%)	5 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.9%)	41 (11.9%)	45.2	367^th of 576 public elementary schools	36.3%		48.9	343^rd of 557 public elementary schools	38.4%	24	63.8	77.4	59.0	75.9	75.5	67.2	63.9	$12,209	$291	$11,917
Penn Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	230 N Dubuque St	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1150	512	33	15.4	13.3%	387 (75.6%)	43 (8.4%)	43 (8.4%)	12 (2.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (5.1%)	80.2	73^rd of 576 public elementary schools	87.3%		75.9	103^rd of 557 public elementary schools	81.5%	30	83.9	95.8	81.9	88.5	90.1	75.3	73.6	$12,509	$453	$12,055
Christine Grant Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1000 North Bend Drive	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1500	426	32	13.2	18.5%	321 (75.4%)	51 (12.0%)	24 (5.6%)	6 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.6%)	67.7	195^th of 576 public elementary schools	66.1%		64.8	201^st of 557 public elementary schools	63.9%	6	78.7	82.1	75.0	85.2	75.6	81.9	68.1
James Van Allen Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	170 Abigail Ave	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1185	376	26	14.6	30.3%	224 (59.6%)	49 (13.0%)	58 (15.4%)	25 (6.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.1%)	54.6	294^th of 576 public elementary schools	49.0%		47.2	349^th of 557 public elementary schools	37.3%	55	73.3	74.6	77.4	75.0	72.9	66.1	69.4	$12,084	$214	$11,870
North Bend Elementary	Public	K-3	2230 St Andrews Drive	North Liberty	52317	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 626-3950	326	25	13.0	30.4%	197 (60.4%)	58 (17.8%)	26 (8.0%)	8 (2.5%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	34 (10.4%)								(n/a)	77.2			84.8				$26,848	$381	$26,466
East Ridge Elementary	Public	4-5	2950 Crossing Ridge Dr	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 545-2075	442	29	15.4	32.4%	309 (69.9%)	46 (10.4%)	45 (10.2%)	14 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (6.3%)	68.4	187^th of 576 public elementary schools	67.5%		58.8	264^th of 557 public elementary schools	52.6%	77		84.5	77.8		80.3	75.7	70.8
Wickham Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	601 Oakdale Blvd	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 688-1175	315	21	15.2	19.7%	182 (57.8%)	34 (10.8%)	17 (5.4%)	63 (20.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (6.0%)	92.8	6^th of 576 public elementary schools	99.0%		92.4	6^th of 557 public elementary schools	98.9%		91.4	100.0	89.7	94.3	93.6	94.9	87.2	$12,974	$451	$12,524
Oak Hill Elementary	Public	2-3	504 N Park Road	Tiffin	52340	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(319) 545-2248	173	13	13.4	30.6%	114 (65.9%)	19 (11.0%)	23 (13.3%)	6 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (6.4%)								(n/a)
Tiffin Elementary	Public	K-1	104 N. Park Rd	Tiffin	52340	Johnson County	Clear Creek Amana Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 545-2081	191	18	10.6	37.2%	107 (56.0%)	34 (17.8%)	22 (11.5%)	13 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (7.9%)								(n/a)								$27,228	$701	$26,527
Kirkwood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1401 9th St	Coralville	52241	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1120	270	27	9.9	69.6%	62 (23.0%)	135 (50.0%)	47 (17.4%)	7 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.0%)	7.7	538^th of 576 public elementary schools	6.6%		18.4	477^th of 557 public elementary schools	14.4%	61	33.3	66.7	40.5	36.7	60.6	37.8	32.4	$15,376	$1,350	$14,026

Frequently Asked Questions about Buford Garner Elementary

What schools do graduates of Buford Garner Elementary attend?

Students who attend Buford Garner Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : North Central Middle School
High : Liberty High School

Is Buford Garner Elementary a good school?

Buford Garner Elementary ranks 367^th of 576 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Buford Garner Elementary in?

Iowa City Community School District

What is the racial makeup of Buford Garner Elementary?

Students at Buford Garner Elementary are 61% White, 13% African American, 12% Two or more races, 12% Hispanic, 1% Asian.

How many students attend Buford Garner Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 344 students attended Buford Garner Elementary.

Rate Buford Garner Elementary!

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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.