The top reported proficiency rate is 70% in Math. The lowest is 59% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Hanawalt Elementary
Hanawalt Elementary sits in the Des Moines Independent Community School District, serving kindergarten through fifth grade in a neighborhood school setting. The school is one of many elementary options within Iowa’s capital city, a regional hub for insurance, financial services, and state government.
The student body draws from the surrounding residential area. A bit more than half of the students are white, roughly a quarter are Black, and the rest are primarily Hispanic or multiracial. Nearly half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a marker of economic diversity that is substantial but not overwhelming for a Des Moines public school.
On state assessments, Hanawalt’s results sit below the midpoint when compared to other school districts across Polk County. In math, about two-thirds of students scored at a proficient level, while in English language arts, about three out of five students reached proficiency. Science results were similar, with roughly three out of five students scoring proficient. The test participation rates were high, which means these results reflect nearly all enrolled students.
These numbers give a mixed picture. Proficiency in math is a relative bright spot for the school, but the ELA and science figures suggest that a meaningful portion of students are not yet meeting grade-level expectations. A parent considering Hanawalt might want to look into how the school supports students who are below benchmark and what interventions are in place, especially in reading and science. Since only one year of assessment data is available, there is no trend to show whether the school is improving or declining from year to year.
The school does not serve grades beyond fifth, so there is no graduation rate to report, and data on special education and English learner populations was not provided. Likewise, chronic absenteeism and discipline data were absent from the available records. A family that values transparency on these topics may want to ask the school directly.
Hanawalt is a regular public school with no charter or magnet designation. It operates as a standard neighborhood elementary within the larger Des Moines system, the state’s largest district. The area around the school is in the western part of Des Moines, in a ZIP code where home values are modestly above the Iowa state median and close to the national figure, meaning this is not the cheapest part of the metro but also not the most expensive. Rents in this ZIP code are slightly below the national average and have softened a bit recently, suggesting that the housing market here is relatively accessible for a capital city.
Des Moines itself is a city with extensive parkland and trails, a downtown anchored by the state capitol and the Des Moines Art Center, and a growing metro area that has drawn tech data centers and corporate offices. That broader context may appeal to families who want urban amenities and a stable job market while living in a residential neighborhood served by this elementary school.
For a family weighing Hanawalt, the core academic takeaway is a school where math performance is decent but reading and science proficiency have room to grow, set in a diverse, mid-sized elementary within a large district. The school’s strengths are in the tested subjects it does better on and in its high participation rates on state exams. Its soft spots are in the subjects where fewer than two-thirds of students meet the bar. Without multi-year data or details on special populations, a parent’s best next step is to visit, talk to teachers about how they address skill gaps, and see whether the school’s day-to-day culture matches their child’s needs.
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