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Waukee, Iowa - 17 schools
An equity score of 22/100 ranks Waukee Comm School District #277 of 303 districts in Iowa (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,578 per pupil, Waukee Comm School District ranks #255 of 327 Iowa districts by per-pupil spending (Iowa districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
13,082
Total Enrollment
17
Schools
$11,578
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Waukee Comm School District operates 17 public schools serving 13,082 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Iowa. The school portfolio breaks down into 10 elementary, 3 combined, 2 high, 2 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 Dallas County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,578 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 49.3% local, 44.6% state, and 6.1% 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 22/100, ranked #277 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 2 of 17 schools offering Advanced Placement (32 AP courses district-wide), a 379.9:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 19.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 65.2% White, 9.5% African American, 8.8% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Maple Grove Elementary School, with a diversity index of 68.4/100.
Its largest campus is Northwest High School, enrolling 1,574 students (12% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Radiant Elementary School, at 273 students, a 6x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Waukee Comm School District school enrollment varies 5.8× across entities
Waukee Comm School District school enrollment ranges from 273 students (lowest) to 1,574 students (highest), a spread of 1,301 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.
Waukee Comm School District student-counselor ratio is 380:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Waukee Comm School District chronic absenteeism rate is 19.8% — 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 Waukee Comm School District is typically wider than the Waukee Comm School District-aggregate figure suggests.
How many schools are in Waukee Comm School District?
Waukee Comm School District has 17 schools, including 2 high, 2 middle, 3 combined, 10 elementary. Total enrollment is 13,082 students.
How much does Waukee Comm School District spend per student?
Waukee Comm School District spends $11,578 per student. The district has an equity score of 22/100, ranking #277 in Iowa.
What is the demographic composition of Waukee Comm School District?
Waukee Comm School District students are 65.2% White, 9.5% African American, 8.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, averaged across 17 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Waukee Comm School District?
Waukee Comm School District has an equity score of 22/100, ranking #277 out of 303 districts in Iowa.