The top reported proficiency rate is 72% in Math. The lowest is 52% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Norman Borlaug Elementary School
Norman Borlaug Elementary School is a regular public school in the Iowa City Community School District, serving prekindergarten through sixth grade in the city of Coralville. The school sits on Kennedy Parkway in a residential area of this fast-growing Iowa City suburb. The student body is diverse: substantial shares of students are Black, white, and Asian, with a smaller Hispanic population and a handful of students who identify as two or more races. About half of the students come from households with incomes low enough to qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a level that gives the school a moderate share of economic need among its families.
State testing results from the ISASP assessments, the most recent data available, show the school’s overall proficiency across math, reading, and science. On the math portion, the majority of students scored at or above the proficient threshold. In English language arts, a solid majority also met that mark. Science, tested only in certain grades, had a lower share of students reaching proficiency, a pattern that is not unusual for elementary science scores in many schools. When compared with other districts across Johnson County, Norman Borlaug’s combined proficiency index places the school in the bottom quartile of the county’s districts. That is a relative weakness worth noting; parents considering the school may want to look into how the school supports students in skill areas where the countywide average is higher.
The school’s grade band ends at sixth grade, so there is no graduation rate to report. Information about chronic absenteeism and special education or English learner populations was not available in the data, which limits the picture of student support and daily attendance. A parent curious about those areas would need to ask the school directly.
Coralville itself is a suburb closely tied to Iowa City and the University of Iowa, the region’s dominant employer. The city has grown steadily, with new housing subdivisions going in north of Interstate 80 and major retail and entertainment development in corridors like the Iowa River Landing. Home values in the area are somewhat above the statewide average, and rents have been rising, reflecting the area’s economic vitality and demand for housing. The city describes itself as pedestrian- and bike-friendly, with an extensive network of trails and sidewalks, though much of its commercial landscape remains auto-oriented. The Iowa City Community School District, which operates Borlaug, launched a permanent K-12 online learning program in 2021, offering families a continuous full-time virtual option for any grade level within the district. No other recent district-level changes—such as referendums, boundary shifts, or major curriculum adoptions—were publicly reported in the search.
For a family weighing this school, the takeaway is a fairly straightforward one. Norman Borlaug is a mid-sized K-6 school in a growing, economically strong suburb, serving a racially and economically mixed student body. Academic proficiency is solid in absolute terms but sits below the county median when stacked against neighboring districts. The school’s setting in Coralville offers proximity to a major university and a wide range of retail and civic amenities, but the school’s own performance profile suggests that families who prioritize top-tier district-wide scores may want to explore the other schools in Johnson County.
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