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Tipton, Iowa - 3 schools
An equity score of 49/100 ranks Tipton Comm School District #166 of 303 districts in Iowa (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,524 per pupil, Tipton Comm School District ranks #260 of 327 Iowa districts by per-pupil spending (Iowa districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
941
Total Enrollment
3
Schools
$11,524
Per-Pupil Spending
High, Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Tipton Comm School District operates 3 public schools serving 941 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Iowa. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 high, 1 combined, 1 elementary schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Cedar County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,524 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 39.7% local, 51.7% state, and 8.7% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 49/100, ranked #166 of 303 in Iowa against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 3 schools offering Advanced Placement (3 AP courses district-wide), a 238:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 20.6% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 93.1% White, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 0.5% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Tipton Elementary School, with a diversity index of 18.9/100.
Its largest campus is Tipton High School, enrolling 302 students (36% of the district's total enrollment).
Tipton High School accounts for 32.1% of all Tipton Comm School District student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Tipton 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.
Tipton Comm School District student-counselor ratio is 238:1 — low (typically associated with meeting or exceeding the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommended 250:1 benchmark, which correlates with stronger college and career counseling capacity)
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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Tipton Comm School District chronic absenteeism rate is 20.6% — 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 Tipton Comm School District is typically wider than the Tipton Comm School District-aggregate figure suggests.
How many schools are in Tipton Comm School District?
Tipton Comm School District has 3 schools, including 1 high, 1 combined, 1 elementary. Total enrollment is 941 students.
How much does Tipton Comm School District spend per student?
Tipton Comm School District spends $11,524 per student. The district has an equity score of 49/100, ranking #166 in Iowa.
What is the demographic composition of Tipton Comm School District?
Tipton Comm School District students are 93.1% White, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 0.5% African American, 0.1% Asian, averaged across 3 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Tipton Comm School District?
Tipton Comm School District has an equity score of 49/100, ranking #166 out of 303 districts in Iowa.