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James Elementary School

Public Grades K-5

555^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 4% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

James Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Ottumwa, Iowa, serving 228 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Ottumwa Community School District, which is ranked 299 out of 313 school districts in Iowa and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

James Elementary School has consistently ranked in the bottom half of Iowa elementary schools, with a ranking between 434 and 555 over the past 10 years and a 0-1 star rating from SchoolDigger. The school faces several challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 21.6% to 28.3% over the past few years, significantly lower test scores on the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) compared to the district and state averages, and a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 63.76% to 77.63% over the past few years.

When comparing James Elementary School to other nearby schools within the Ottumwa Community School District, it becomes clear that James is one of the lower-performing schools. For example, Eisenhower Elementary and Horace Mann Elementary, which are also in the district, have significantly higher test scores and lower chronic absenteeism rates than James. Despite being in the bottom half of Iowa elementary schools for the past decade, James Elementary School has not shown significant improvement in its rankings or test scores, indicating a need for a more comprehensive and sustained approach to school improvement efforts.

249

Students ?

13.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$13,974

Per pupil spending ?

68.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1001 N Benton
Ottumwa, IA 52501

(641) 684-5411

District: Ottumwa Community School District

Students who attend James Elementary School usually attend:

High:	Ottumwa High School
Alternative:	Evans Junior High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

34.1%

Hispanic:

22.9%

Pacific Islander:

22.1%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare James Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 15th percentile in 2015 → 4th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (42% vs 71% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (4th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 11 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school42%

District avg54%

Iowa avg71%

555^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 4%▼ down 11 pts since 2015

From bottom 15% (2015) to bottom 4% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 4Elementary Schools in the Ottumwa Community School District

299^th of 313Ottumwa 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	4.3	555 of 576	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.0	527 of 557	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.4	517 of 565	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	19.5	491 of 574	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.0	496 of 567	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.2	434 of 603	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	5.8	540 of 567	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	9.7	530 of 574	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	13.2	542 of 599	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	20.3	525 of 616	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	16.2	539 of 603	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	21.4	555 of 624	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	4.9	610 of 626	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts44%-27 vs state

Mathematics43%-31 vs state

Science34%-30 vs state

★

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Schools Near James Elementary School

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 English Language Arts 6th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 6th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
James Elementary School	Public	K-5	1001 N Benton	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 684-5411	249	19	13.0	68.3%	85 (34.1%)	40 (16.1%)	57 (22.9%)	3 (1.2%)	1 (0.4%)	55 (22.1%)	8 (3.2%)	4.3	555^th of 576 public elementary schools	3.6%		7	527^th of 557 public elementary schools	5.4%	28	41.2	55.6	38.9		35.3	55.6	41.7		34.3	$13,974	$1,218	$12,755
Horace Mann Elementary School	Public	K-5	1523 N Court St	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 684-4661	250	19	13.1	33.6%	138 (55.2%)	38 (15.2%)	47 (18.8%)	6 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.2%)	3 (1.2%)	35.7	430^th of 576 public elementary schools	25.3%		42.9	376^th of 557 public elementary schools	32.5%	54	44.7	79.1	63.9		65.8	67.4	61.1		66.7	$13,776	$1,167	$12,609
Wilson Elementary School	Public	K-5	1102 E. 4th St.	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 684-5441	335	27	12.4	59.7%	85 (25.4%)	56 (16.7%)	113 (33.7%)	11 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	62 (18.5%)	8 (2.4%)	14.6	510^th of 576 public elementary schools	11.5%		26.3	453^rd of 557 public elementary schools	18.7%	57	60.0	74.5	25.5		60.0	53.2	34.0		19.1	$13,451	$1,167	$12,284
Eisenhower Elementary School	Public	K-5	2624 Marilyn Rd	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 684-5617	248	18	13.7	29.4%	179 (72.2%)	14 (5.6%)	29 (11.7%)	6 (2.4%)	1 (0.4%)	16 (6.5%)	3 (1.2%)	59.9	262^nd of 576 public elementary schools	54.5%		66.3	188^th of 557 public elementary schools	66.2%	74	66.7	76.2	76.7		76.2	81.0	72.1		74.4	$12,778	$1,167	$11,611
Fahrney Elementary	Public	3-5	520 South Milner	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(641) 684-6597	490	31	15.8	49.8%	239 (48.8%)	27 (5.5%)	139 (28.4%)	29 (5.9%)	3 (0.6%)	47 (9.6%)	6 (1.2%)								(n/a)
Douma Elementary School	Public	1-2	307 W. Mary St.	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 684-4668	327	29	11.3	50.5%	163 (49.8%)	20 (6.1%)	94 (28.7%)	11 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (10.4%)	5 (1.5%)								(n/a)										$14,254	$1,164	$13,090
Pickwick Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	1306 W Williams	Ottumwa	52501	Wapello County	Ottumwa Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 684-7179	560	25	22.6	43.4%	282 (50.4%)	63 (11.3%)	148 (26.4%)	20 (3.6%)	4 (0.7%)	29 (5.2%)	14 (2.5%)								(n/a)
Cardinal Elementary	Public	PK, KG-4	5414 Hwy 16	Eldon	52554	Wapello County	Cardinal Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 652-3591	495	38	12.9	64.4%	439 (88.7%)	1 (0.2%)	38 (7.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	16 (3.2%)	37.5	419^th of 576 public elementary schools	27.3%		31.1	439^th of 557 public elementary schools	21.2%	20	62.2	73.5			66.2	69.9				$10,997	$435	$10,563
Blakesburg Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	407 S Wilson	Blakesburg	52536	Wapello County	Eddyville-Blakesburg- Fremont Central School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 938-2203	103	13	7.9	41.7%	96 (93.2%)	1 (1.0%)	3 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.9%)	36	426^th of 576 public elementary schools	26.0%		39	392^nd of 557 public elementary schools	29.6%	34	53.3		57.1	53.3	93.3		71.4	60.0	64.3	$13,338	$575	$12,764
Fremont Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	525 East Main Street	Fremont	52561	Mahaska County	Eddyville-Blakesburg- Fremont Central School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 933-4211	108	10	10.7	45.4%	95 (88.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (8.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.7%)	35.4	433^rd of 576 public elementary schools	24.8%					(n/a)	50.0	42.9	41.2	83.3	90.0	78.6	52.9	83.3	52.9	$14,187	$580	$13,607

Frequently Asked Questions about James Elementary School

Is James Elementary School a good school?

James Elementary School ranks in the bottom 3.6% of Iowa elementary schools.

How many students attend James Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 249 students attended James Elementary School.

What district is James Elementary School in?

Ottumwa Community School District

What schools do graduates of James Elementary School attend?

Students who attend James Elementary School usually go on to attend:

High : Ottumwa High School
Alternative : Evans Junior High School

What is the racial makeup of James Elementary School?

Students at James Elementary School are 34% White, 23% Hispanic, 22% Pacific Islander, 16% African American, 3% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

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Schools in Ottumwa, IA

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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.