West Des Moines
The Suburban-Urban Divide: West Des Moines at 90%, Des Moines at 71%
Drive west on Interstate 235 from downtown Des Moines to the suburb of West Des Moines and the graduation rate climbs 18 points. Drive another 10 minutes to Waukee and it climbs 26 points. Same metro ...
West Des Moines' Hidden Crisis: K-8 at 13.6%, High School at 44.9%
If you look only at the overall K-12 chronic absenteeism rate, West Des Moines Community School District appears to have a manageable problem. At 24.3%, it is above the state average of 15.8% — concer...
Des Moines Has Lost 5 Points Since 2019 — The State Capital's Graduation Slide
Des Moines Independent, the largest school district in Iowa, graduated 71% of its students in 2024. Five years earlier, it was 76%.