The top reported proficiency rate is 87% in Math. The lowest is 66% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Centennial Elementary
Centennial Elementary, a regular public school in Altoona serving preschool through fifth grade, sits within the Southeast Polk Community School District. Its most recent state assessment results, from the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress, offer a clear picture of academic performance across a single tested year. In mathematics, a strong majority of students met or exceeded proficiency standards. English language arts results also showed a high proficiency rate, though slightly lower than math. Science proficiency was lower still, a gap that may reflect the smaller number of students tested in that subject or the nature of the assessment itself. Because only one year of data is available, no trend can be established, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent a stable pattern or a single snapshot.
The student body is predominantly white, with Hispanic students making up roughly a tenth of enrollment and smaller shares of Black students and students identifying as two or more races. Asian students and Native American students represent very small shares. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing the school in a moderate-income context. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not reported, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those support structures. The school does not appear to be a Title I school, though the data on that status was absent rather than explicit.
Centennial Elementary operates as a regular school with no charter or magnet designation. It is one of four elementary schools located within Altoona; the district’s high school draws students from Altoona and several surrounding communities, placing the main secondary campus outside the city. The school’s grade span means there is no graduation rate to report, and no chronic absenteeism data was available.
Altoona itself has been growing rapidly, adding residents at a notable pace since the last census. The city bills itself as the entertainment capital of Iowa, drawing millions of visitors annually to its amusement park, casino, and outlet mall. Major employers include Meta’s data center, Prairie Meadows, and Adventureland, alongside retail and logistics sectors. The built environment is suburban and auto-oriented, with entertainment and shopping concentrated along highway corridors. DART bus routes connect Altoona to the Des Moines region, but the city lacks a traditional walkable downtown core. Residential subdivisions and large-scale commercial developments define the landscape, and the city government and schools are distributed rather than clustered.
Housing values in the area have been relatively stable, with typical home prices above the state benchmark and slightly below the national median. A typical monthly mortgage payment on a median-priced home, assuming a standard down payment and current interest rates, would run higher than the average rent in the area. The unemployment rate has been moderate nationally, and the local median household income is close to the national figure. For families moving into the area, the trade-off is a fast-growing suburb with strong commercial amenities and a relatively affordable housing market compared to the national average, but with a car-dependent layout.
Compared to other school districts in Polk County, Centennial Elementary’s combined proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it above the midpoint of the county set. That positioning, alongside the school’s strong math and ELA results, suggests a solid academic foundation for an elementary school, though the science scores and the absence of multi-year data mean a parent may want to track future results to confirm the pattern. The school’s size, moderate diversity, and suburban setting make it a straightforward neighborhood option for families living in Altoona’s residential areas who want a public elementary within the Southeast Polk system.
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