Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal
records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our
editorial standards & corrections policy, the
methodology behind these numbers, or
report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.
Johnston, Iowa - 8 schools
An equity score of 26/100 ranks Johnston Comm School District #260 of 303 districts in Iowa (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,756 per pupil, Johnston Comm School District ranks #237 of 327 Iowa districts by per-pupil spending (Iowa districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
7,487
Total Enrollment
8
Schools
$11,756
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Johnston Comm School District operates 8 public schools serving 7,487 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Iowa. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 elementary, 2 combined, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Polk County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,756 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 327 Iowa districts by per-pupil spending. See how Iowa compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 46.6% local, 45.8% state, and 7.6% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 26/100, ranked #260 of 303 in Iowa against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 8 schools offering Advanced Placement (17 AP courses district-wide), a 598:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 18.2% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 62.7% White, 12.1% African American, 10.8% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Horizon Elementary, with a diversity index of 62.7/100.
Its largest campus is Johnston Senior High School, enrolling 1,820 students (25% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Lawson Elementary School, at 545 students, a 3x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Johnston Senior High School accounts for 24.3% of all Johnston Comm School District student enrollment
That concentration means Johnston Comm School District-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Johnston Comm School District school enrollment varies 3.3× across entities
Johnston Comm School District school enrollment ranges from 545 students (lowest) to 1,820 students (highest), a spread of 1,275 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Johnston Comm School District student-counselor ratio is 598:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Johnston Comm School District chronic absenteeism rate is 18.2% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Johnston Comm School District is typically wider than the Johnston Comm School District-aggregate figure suggests.
Comparisons are relative to Johnston Comm School District's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in Iowa
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Johnston Comm School District?
Johnston Comm School District has 8 schools, including 1 high, 2 combined, 1 middle, 4 elementary. Total enrollment is 7,487 students.
How much does Johnston Comm School District spend per student?
Johnston Comm School District spends $11,756 per student. The district has an equity score of 26/100, ranking #260 in Iowa.
What is the demographic composition of Johnston Comm School District?
Johnston Comm School District students are 62.7% White, 12.1% African American, 10.8% Asian, 8.6% Hispanic or Latino, averaged across 8 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Johnston Comm School District?
Johnston Comm School District has an equity score of 26/100, ranking #260 out of 303 districts in Iowa.