Iowa Department of Education releases new school district performance ratings

Allamakee Community School District scores as the top-rated district in the state of Iowa

Iowans now have access to district-level performance ratings through a new addition to the Iowa School Performance Profiles, providing critical, transparent information on how Iowa’s public school districts are serving students. The new district-level ratings show more than 58% of Iowa’s 325 public school districts and four public charter schools during the 2024-2025 school year performed within the top three of six rating categories, with over 88% rating acceptable or higher.

After Waukon High School received the highest ranking in the state of Iowa in the 2024-2025 Iowa School Performance Profiles released by the Iowa Department of Education in September of this year, and Waukon Middle School ranked fifth in those same profiles based on each individual school center, the newly-released district-level performance ratings have the Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) ranked as the number-one school district in the entire state of Iowa, based on the Iowa unified accountability system, which examines a set of core indicators. The ACSD was one of two school districts in the state of Iowa to receive an “Exceptional” designation, accumulating 707.52 points out of a possible 900 points possible. Morning Sun Community School District in far southeastern Iowa received the profiles’ other “Exceptional” designation, compiling 549.94 points.

Overall, Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) matched or exceeded the state average in most all of the analysis categories, including attendance growth, graduation rates, proficiency in math, science and English language arts, and post-secondary readiness, while staying below the state average in the category of chronic absenteeism.

“This ranking shows the hard work done every day by our staff, students, and parents,” Allamakee Community School District Superintendent Jay Mathis shared. “Many of the metrics include statewide test proficiency and growth, as well as attendance and graduation rate. Another key factor is our great partnership with NICC (Northeast Iowa Community College) and the number of college credits our kids earn, as well as our work-based learning experiences. I also want to credit our great teacher leadership program and staff development efforts. It is truly a team effort! Our goal is to continue to get better in each of these categories - we still have work to do to give our kids the very best education possible.”

The Iowa School Performance Profiles is an online tool showing how public schools and districts performed on required measures. Developed to meet both federal and state requirements for publishing online school report cards, the Iowa School Performance Profiles now includes both district- and school-level scores and performance ratings for all public districts and schools, as well as by student groups across a set of accountability measures. The online resource also shows public schools that have been identified for additional support and improvement based on their performance and additional data required by law but not counted toward accountability scores.

This is the first year of district-level designations and ratings, which were calculated based on Iowa’s updated unified accountability system approved by the U.S. Department of Education in 2024. The accountability system uses a clear, streamlined set of core indicators to provide an overall score and performance rating for all public districts and schools. Rating categories include exceptional (highest performing), high performing, commendable, acceptable, needs improvement and priority (lowest performing). The same methodology and cut scores were used for determining both school and district ratings.

Indicators focus on proficiency in English language arts, mathematics and science, student academic growth, chronic absenteeism and attendance growth among all K-12 schools. Districts with high schools include two additional measures - graduation rates and a postsecondary readiness indicator measuring work-based learning experiences and college credit attained by students.

The new district-level ratings represent the next step in Iowa’s unified accountability and school improvement system, providing important data to support districts with their improvement planning, identifying supports to address high-need areas and improving student outcomes for all student groups going forward. The inclusion of district-level ratings also aligns Iowa with national best practices in public transparency, accountability and support structures across federal laws.

The Department has launched two new grant opportunities to further support district-wide improvement initiatives. Districts with an overall “priority” rating are eligible to apply for the District-Level Evidenced-Based Professional Development Grant focused on building system-level capacity for implementing evidence-based instruction. A second opportunity, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act - Differentiated Accountability (IDEA-DA) Continuous Improvement Grant, is available to districts with “priority” or “needs improvement” ratings and that also have level 2 or level 3 IDEA-DA designations. IDEA-DA’s tiered levels represent the intensity of resources needed for special education program improvement to meet the needs of students with disabilities, with level 3 being the highest level of intensity.

The Iowa School Performance Profiles, launched in 2018 to meet the requirements of the  federal Every Student Succeeds Act law, meets state and federal requirements to publish report cards reflecting the performance of all public schools. Additional data not included in the performance ratings are available under the Additional Metrics drop-down on the website. This includes measures such as educator effectiveness, postsecondary enrollment, staff retention and per pupil expenditures.