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West Des Moines Community Schools, Iowa, elections

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West Des Moines Community Schools
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District details
School board members: 7
Next election: November 4, 2025
Students: 9,170 (2023-2024)
Schools: 14 (2023-2024)
Website: Link

West Des Moines Community Schools is a school district in Iowa (Polk and Dallas counties). During the 2024 school year, 9,170 students attended one of the district's 14 schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

Jump to a section:
Elections School board Location Budget Academic performance Students Staff Schools

Elections

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West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large

General election

The general election will occur on November 4, 2025.

General election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large (3 seats)

Fannette Elliott, Anadelia Morgan, and Lila P.M. Starr are running in the general election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large on November 4, 2025.

Candidate
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Fannette Elliott (Nonpartisan)
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Anadelia Morgan (Nonpartisan)
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Lila P.M. Starr (Nonpartisan)

There are no incumbents in this race.

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West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large

General election

General election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large

Incumbent Elizabeth Brennan, incumbent Vicky Poole, and incumbent Jennifer Wells won election in the general election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large on September 12, 2017.

Candidate
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Elizabeth Brennan (Nonpartisan)
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Vicky Poole (Nonpartisan)
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Jennifer Wells (Nonpartisan)

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West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large

General election

General election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large

Incumbent David Brown, incumbent Liz Cox, incumbent Melinda Dunnwald, and incumbent Jill Johnson won election in the general election for West Des Moines Community Schools school board, At-large on September 8, 2015.

Candidate
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David Brown (Nonpartisan)
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Liz Cox (Nonpartisan)
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Melinda Dunnwald (Nonpartisan)
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Jill Johnson (Nonpartisan)

Incumbents are bolded and underlined.

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About the district

School board

West Des Moines Community Schools consists of seven members serving four-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members
NameYear assumed officeYear term ends
Michael Andreski20232027
Elizabeth Larson20232027
Jeff Hicks20192027
Jill Johnson20152027
Fannette Elliott20212025
Lila Montoya Starr20212025
Anadelia Morgan20212025

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District map

School district map

Overlapping state house districts

West Des Moines Community Schools
Office NameCurrent OfficeholderParty% School District Covered% Other District Covered
Iowa House of Representatives District 31Mary MadisonDemocratic Party 59% 90%
Iowa House of Representatives District 32Jennifer KonfrstDemocratic Party 26% 93%
Iowa House of Representatives District 44Larry McBurneyDemocratic Party 7% 17%
Iowa House of Representatives District 28David YoungRepublican Party 6% 3%
Iowa House of Representatives District 30Megan SrinivasDemocratic Party< 1% 1%

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[1]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Federal: $14,957,000 $1,611 9%
Local: $82,730,000 $8,910 51%
State: $64,389,000 $6,935 40%
Total: $162,076,000 $17,456
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPE AMOUNT AMOUNT PER STUDENT PERCENT
Total Expenditures: $165,991,000 $17,877
Total Current Expenditures: $120,335,000 $12,960
Instructional Expenditures: $77,758,000 $8,374 47%
Student and Staff Support: $11,212,000 $1,207 7%
Administration: $11,918,000 $1,283 7%
Operations, Food Service, Other: $19,447,000 $2,094 12%
Total Capital Outlay: $34,701,000 $3,737
Construction: $32,223,000 $3,470
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: $2,651,000 $285
Interest on Debt: $3,034,000 $326

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."[2]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 66 79 39 42 >=50 61 76
2018-2019 75 80 51 55 >=50 70-74 83
2017-2018 79 80 56 61 >=50 70-74 87
2016-2017 81 83 57 64 60-79 75-79 87
2015-2016 85 89 63 70 >=50 80-84 89
2014-2015 85 89 65 72 >=50 80-84 90
2013-2014 86 92 66 71 >=80 80-84 90
2012-2013 84 90-94 55-59 68 >=50 75-79 88
2011-2012 84 90-94 55-59 64 60-79 80-84 88
2010-2011 83 85-89 55-59 62 >=80 85-89 87

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2020-2021 71 79 48 49 >=50 68 81
2018-2019 71 76 51 48 >=50 65-69 80
2017-2018 77 77 57 56 >=50 70-74 85
2016-2017 79 79 60 59 >=80 70-74 85
2015-2016 82 80-84 68 65 >=50 75-79 86
2014-2015 81 83 62 61 >=50 70-74 86
2013-2014 81 85 64 65 60-79 75-79 86
2012-2013 79 75-79 60-64 55 >=50 75-79 84
2011-2012 78 75-79 60-64 54 40-59 75-79 83
2010-2011 82 85-89 60-64 56 >=80 85-89 86

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year All (%) Asian/Pacific Islander (%) Black (%) Hispanic (%) Native American (%) Two or More Races (%) White (%)
2019-2020 94 >=90 >=90 85-89 PS >=90 96
2018-2019 93 >=90 80-89 85-89 PS >=80 95
2017-2018 93 >=90 >=90 85-89 PS >=80 93
2016-2017 94 >=90 >=90 85-89 PS >=80 95
2015-2016 93 >=90 70-79 >=90 PS >=80 95
2014-2015 94 >=90 80-89 80-84 >=50 >=80 96
2013-2014 93 >=90 >=90 85-89 >=50 94
2012-2013 91 >=80 80-89 80-84 PS >=80 92
2011-2012 92 >=90 >=80 80-89 >=80 94
2010-2011 92 >=90 >=90 80-89 PS >=80 92

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[3]

Year Enrollment Year-to-year change (%)
2023-2024 9,170 -0.6
2022-2023 9,225 -0.7
2021-2022 9,285 0.4
2020-2021 9,248 -1.1
2019-2020 9,351 1.4
2018-2019 9,223 -0.7
2017-2018 9,284 -0.8
2016-2017 9,357 -0.6
2015-2016 9,416 -1.1
2014-2015 9,519 1.2
2013-2014 9,407 0.3
2012-2013 9,376 0.3
2011-2012 9,346 1.5
2010-2011 9,210 3.6
2009-2010 8,880 1.8
2008-2009 8,720 0.4
2007-2008 8,687 1.0
2006-2007 8,604 0.5
2005-2006 8,564 0.9
2004-2005 8,491 -1.8
2003-2004 8,646 -1.2
2002-2003 8,749 -0.6
2001-2002 8,804 2.2
2000-2001 8,606 0.6
1999-2000 8,551 0.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACE West Des Moines Community Schools (%) Iowa K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native 0.2 0.3
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander 5.8 2.5
Black 11.6 7.0
Hispanic 19.8 13.0
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.0 0.7
Two or More Races 7.2 5.0
White 55.5 71.5

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[4]

As of the 2023-2024 school year, West Des Moines Community Schools had 629.56 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 14.57.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten: 11.12
Kindergarten: 44.95
Elementary: 387.61
Secondary: 185.88
Total: 629.56

West Des Moines Community Schools employed 31.99 district administrators and 38.90 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators: 31.99
District Administrative Support: 32.71
School Administrators: 38.90
School Administrative Support: 27.31
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPE NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides: 235.43
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: 37.61
Total Guidance Counselors: 20.99
Elementary Guidance Counselors: 0.00
Secondary Guidance Counselors: 0.00
Librarians/Media Specialists: 11.76
Library/Media Support: 1.67
Student Support Services: 54.03
Other Support Services: 137.89

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[5]

West Des Moines Community Schools operates 14 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
Clive Learning Academy512PK-6
Crestview School Of Inquiry549PK-6
Crossroads Park Elementary School539KG-6
Fairmeadows Elementary School545PK-6
Hillside Elementary School581PK-6
Indian Hills Junior High School6537-8
Jordan Creek Elementary School646PK-6
Learning Resource Center23PK-PK
Stilwell Junior High School6447-8
Valley High School2,11110-12
Valley Southwoods7449-9
Walnut Creek Campus1659-12
Western Hills Elementary School560PK-6
Westridge Elementary775PK-6

About school boards

Education legislation in Iowa

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

School Boards Education Policy Local Politics Iowa
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External links

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    • Footnotes

    1. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    2. ↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
    3. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    4. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
    5. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
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