Public schools in Iowa
1,318 operating public schools in 329 school districts and other education agencies, school year 2024–25.
Operating schoolsDefinition
1,318
Enrollment (sum of schools)Definition
497,102
Teachers (FTE, sum of schools)Definition
34,953.4
Students per teacher FTEDefinition
14.2
Charter schoolsDefinition
7
Largest districts by enrollment
Sorted by enrollment (a size measure, not a quality ranking). 9 Iowa districts have full profiles so far; search all 329.
| District | City | Schools | Students | Students / FTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Moines Independent Comm School District | Des Moines | 59 | 29,676 | 15.7 |
| Cedar Rapids Comm School District | Cedar Rapids | 31 | 15,003 | 14.6 |
| Iowa City Comm School District | Iowa City | 28 | 14,960 | 14 |
| Sioux City Comm School District | Sioux City | 21 | 14,189 | 14.8 |
| Waukee Comm School District | Waukee | 19 | 13,917 | 16 |
| Davenport Comm School District | Davenport | 27 | 12,812 | 13.7 |
| Ankeny Comm School District | Ankeny | 18 | 12,746 | 15.6 |
| Waterloo Comm School District | Waterloo | 18 | 10,484 | 13.7 |
| Dubuque Comm School District | Dubuque | 19 | 9,843 | 12.6 |
| West Des Moines Comm School District | West Des Moines | 14 | 9,009 | — |
| Council Bluffs Comm School District | Council Bluffs | 15 | 8,299 | 14.8 |
| Linn-Mar Comm School District | Marion | 12 | 7,361 | 14.8 |
| Johnston Comm School District | Johnston | 8 | 7,339 | 16 |
| Southeast Polk Comm School District | Altoona | 11 | 6,359 | — |
| Cedar Falls Comm School District | Cedar Falls | 10 | 5,853 | 14.1 |
Schools by locale
| Group | Share | Bar |
|---|---|---|
| City | 16.8% | |
| Suburb | 10.6% | |
| Town | 20.0% | |
| Rural | 52.7% |
Schools by level
| Group | Schools | Bar |
|---|---|---|
| Elementary | 669 | |
| High | 344 | |
| Middle | 245 | |
| Prekindergarten | 41 | |
| Other | 10 | |
| Secondary | 9 |
Sources for this page
- NCES Common Core of Data (CCD), School Directory 2024–25, version 1a. File
ccd_sch_029_2425_w_1a_073025.zip, last checked 2026-11-06. - NCES CCD School Membership 2024–25, version 1a. File
ccd_sch_052_2425_l_1a_073025.zip, last checked 2026-11-06. - NCES CCD School Staff 2024–25, version 1a. File
ccd_sch_059_2425_l_1a_073025.zip, last checked 2026-11-06. - NCES EDGE Public School Geocodes 2024–25. File
EDGE_GEOCODE_PUBLICSCH_2425.zip, last checked 2026-11-06.
Figures are republished from official files without adjustment, except where a page says a value is summed or derived. See methodology and definitions & limitations. Spotted a problem? Report a data issue.