The top reported proficiency rate is 80% in English language arts. The lowest is 63% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Delaware Elementary
Delaware Elementary sits in the eastern part of Des Moines, serving students from prekindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Southeast Polk Community School District. For a family considering this school, the academic picture is mixed in a way that invites a closer look.
On state assessments—the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress—Delaware’s students posted proficiency rates that, taken together, place the school’s overall performance slightly below the midpoint among districts in Polk County. The subject breakdown shows a clear pattern: a strong majority of test takers met or exceeded the bar in English language arts, and math proficiency was also solid, though a notch lower. Science proficiency was weaker, with a share of students falling below the proficient threshold that a parent would likely want to discuss with the school to understand how science instruction is structured in the later elementary grades. Because the testing data available covers only a single year, no trend line exists yet to show whether performance is improving or holding steady.
The school enrolls roughly four hundred students in grades PK through five, making it a mid-sized elementary for this grade band. The student body is predominantly white, with sizable Hispanic, Black, Asian, and multiracial populations, giving the school a degree of racial diversity. Nearly half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mix of economic backgrounds that is common across Des Moines public schools. Information on special education and English learner populations was not reported in the available data, so a parent seeking those specifics would need to ask the school directly.
Des Moines itself is Iowa’s capital and largest city, a regional hub for insurance, financial services, and publishing, with major employers like Principal Financial Group, Wells Fargo, and Wellmark headquartered or heavily present. The city has seen steady metro-area population growth and recent annexation, and tech firms have added data center facilities in the area, signaling ongoing economic development. Home values in the ZIP code serviced by Delaware Elementary are moderate relative to both state and national benchmarks, and rents are similarly positioned. For a family moving into the area, the combination of a stable job market and relatively affordable housing is a practical advantage.
The school itself is a traditional neighborhood elementary with no charter or magnet designation. Its website is the likely source for details on program offerings, before- and after-school care, and parent involvement activities—none of which were included in this data set. No recent district-level changes were reported in the search, and the Southeast Polk district appears to have been stable in its operations.
In sum, Delaware Elementary offers a solid core of literacy and math instruction, with English language arts being a particular strength. The science results are softer, and the school’s overall proficiency index relative to other Polk County districts sits a little below the middle of the pack. Families who value a diverse, economically mixed student body in a well-established Des Moines neighborhood with reasonable housing costs will find the school worth a visit. The missing pieces—special populations data, program specifics, and any multi-year trend—are gaps that a prospective parent can fill by talking to the principal or attending a school tour.
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