The top reported proficiency rate is 49% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Mckinley Elementary School
McKinley Elementary School is a regular public school serving prekindergarten through fifth grade in the Des Moines Independent Community School District. It is located in the southeastern part of the city, in a neighborhood that sits within Iowa’s capital and largest municipality, a metro area that combines state government, insurance and financial services headquarters, and a growing tech and data-center sector. The school itself is a traditional neighborhood elementary, not a charter or magnet.
The student body is diverse. Slightly fewer than half of the students identify as Hispanic, roughly three in ten are White, about one in ten are Black, and the remainder include Asian, multiracial, and a small number of American Indian students. A substantial majority of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that is well above what many suburban districts in the county report. Housing in the surrounding zip code, based on available data, is notably more affordable than both the Iowa state median and the national median, with rents that are also lower—an important consideration for families looking at the area.
Academically, state assessment results from the most recent testing year show that roughly half of McKinley students scored at the proficient level or above in English language arts, mathematics, and science. The proficiency index, which averages across subjects and grades, places the school among the bottom quarter of Polk County districts that reported data. This is not a school where overall scores cluster at the top of the county’s landscape; a parent looking at the numbers will see a school where the majority of students are not yet reaching the proficiency benchmarks set by the state. Because only one year of data is available in the provided records, there is no trend to examine—no way to tell whether performance is stable, improving, or declining.
McKinley serves only elementary grades, so there is no graduation rate, and the data does not include information on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, or course access. Similarly, figures for students with individualized education plans and English learner status were not reported. A parent wanting a fuller picture of student support services or school climate would need to follow up directly with the school or district.
The Des Moines community offers assets that stretch beyond the schoolyard: extensive parkland and trails, the Iowa State Capitol, the Des Moines Art Center, and the Iowa State Fairgrounds are all part of the civic fabric. The metro area has been growing, with recent annexation and investment from major technology companies, though specific new housing developments near the school were not detailed in the available information.
For a family considering McKinley Elementary, the takeaway is straightforward. This is a high-poverty, diverse neighborhood school in a district that serves the full range of Des Moines’ population. Academic proficiency rates are modest and sit low relative to other districts in Polk County. The housing costs in the area are lower than much of the state and nation, which may make the neighborhood more accessible. A parent who values close-to-home schooling in an urban setting with a mixed student population will find McKinley to be a typical large-city elementary; one focused on top-tier test scores will likely look elsewhere in the county. Given the thinness of other operational data, asking the school directly about class sizes, specialist programs, and English learner supports is especially worthwhile.
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