Best Public Schools in Cedar Falls, IA

Summary:

The Cedar Falls Community School District in Iowa operates 10 schools, including 7 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 high school. The district is known for its exceptional academic performance, with several standout schools that rank among the top in the state.

At the elementary level, Bess Streeter Aldrich Elementary and Helen A Hansen Elementary School are particularly impressive, ranking 7th and 30th out of 557 elementary schools in Iowa, respectively. These schools boast impressive test scores, with 87-96% of students proficient in English Language Arts and Math. The district's lone high school, Cedar Falls High School, also performs well, ranking 64th out of 338 high schools in the state and maintaining a 4-star rating.

While the Cedar Falls schools generally have high test scores and low student-teacher ratios, there is some variation in student demographics and economic factors. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch ranges from 8% at Bess Streeter Aldrich Elementary to 49% at North Cedar Elementary. The district's overall performance, with a 4-out-of-5-star rating and a state ranking of 53rd out of 309 districts, indicates that the Cedar Falls Community School District is providing a quality education across its schools.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				ISASP English Language Arts (2024)									ISASP Mathematics (2024)									ISASP Science (2024)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISASP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 4th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 5th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 6th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 7th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 8th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 9th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 10th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 11th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 6th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 7th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 8th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 9th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 10th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 11th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	ISASP Science 8th Grade	ISASP Science 10th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Cedar Falls High School	Public	10-12	1015 Division St	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2500	1,336	94	14.2	23.6%	1,120 (83.8%)	50 (3.7%)	42 (3.1%)	40 (3.0%)	2 (0.1%)	6 (0.4%)	76 (5.7%)	74.8	64^th of 338 public high schools	81.1%		76.8	48^th of 336 public high schools	85.7%	16								81.5	77.8								79.6	79.2			78.4	$13,835	$301	$13,534
Cedar Heights Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	2417 Rainbow Dr	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 553-2855	432	35	12.4	41.9%	351 (81.3%)	24 (5.6%)	13 (3.0%)	8 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	33 (7.6%)	59.7	258^th of 557 public elementary schools	53.7%		62.4	221^st of 565 public elementary schools	60.9%	37	70.1	80.9	63.3	86.4						88.1	74.5	70.0	74.6						55.0			$11,656	$449	$11,208
Helen A Hansen Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	616 Holmes Dr	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2775	565	34	16.7	17.0%	470 (83.2%)	20 (3.5%)	12 (2.1%)	21 (3.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	41 (7.3%)	85.7	30^th of 557 public elementary schools	94.6%		87.7	23^rd of 565 public elementary schools	95.9%	7	86.0	87.7	85.7	90.8						87.2	81.5	82.9	96.1						81.9			$10,408	$395	$10,013
Holmes Junior High School	Public	7-9	505 Holmes Dr	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2650	629	48	13.1	28.3%	536 (85.2%)	24 (3.8%)	16 (2.5%)	11 (1.7%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.5%)	37 (5.9%)	79.6	38^th of 337 public middle schools	88.7%		75.3	59^th of 334 public middle schools	82.3%	21					86.8	88.4	86.5							82.4	87.0	84.5				77.7		$13,002	$245	$12,757
Lincoln Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	321 8th Street	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 553-2950	448	33	13.5	49.3%	356 (79.5%)	30 (6.7%)	19 (4.2%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.3%)	35 (7.8%)	69.7	166^th of 557 public elementary schools	70.2%		63.8	212^th of 565 public elementary schools	62.5%	46	77.8	86.8	74.2	79.7						81.0	81.1	72.6	79.7						71.0			$13,045	$435	$12,609
North Cedar Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	2419 Fern Ave	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 553-2810	297	22	13.5	51.2%	232 (78.1%)	24 (8.1%)	16 (5.4%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (7.7%)	63.9	209^th of 557 public elementary schools	62.5%		66.6	188^th of 565 public elementary schools	66.7%	21	73.0	77.3	83.8	82.9						86.5	63.6	91.9	54.3						70.3			$14,328	$519	$13,809
Orchard Hill Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	3909 Rownd St	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2465	452	34	13.3	33.6%	342 (75.7%)	8 (1.8%)	21 (4.6%)	24 (5.3%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (3.3%)	41 (9.1%)	64.3	206^th of 557 public elementary schools	63.0%		66.9	184^th of 565 public elementary schools	67.4%	22	68.0	75.0	82.0	78.4						94.0	81.7	72.0	70.6						62.0			$12,775	$396	$12,378
Peet Junior High School	Public	7-9	525 E Seerley Blvd	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2710	690	49	14.0	25.1%	578 (83.8%)	30 (4.3%)	18 (2.6%)	22 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	38 (5.5%)	76.3	54^th of 337 public middle schools	84.0%		79.4	41^st of 334 public middle schools	87.7%	13					91.0	89.2	88.5							83.4	80.6	85.4				71.0		$12,622	$245	$12,377
Southdale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	627 Orchard Dr	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2900	562	38	14.8	24.0%	447 (79.5%)	23 (4.1%)	20 (3.6%)	41 (7.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	29 (5.2%)	73.9	119^th of 557 public elementary schools	78.6%		80.8	72^nd of 565 public elementary schools	87.3%	47	81.8	91.2	87.1	74.3						89.1	77.9	81.4	75.7						71.4			$11,540	$473	$11,067
Bess Streeter Aldrich Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	2526 Ashworth Drive	Cedar Falls	50613	Black Hawk County	Cedar Falls Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 553-2901	475	28	17.1	8.6%	419 (88.2%)	6 (1.3%)	6 (1.3%)	21 (4.4%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	21 (4.4%)	91.5	7^th of 557 public elementary schools	98.7%		89.2	15^th of 565 public elementary schools	97.3%	8	87.1	93.1	95.9	93.5						90.0	94.4	95.9	88.7						87.8			$10,912	$517	$10,395

Cities Near Cedar Falls

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Waterloo	3.6 mi	16	365^th
Janesville	8.35 mi	2	45^th
Hudson	8.88 mi	3	109^th
New Hartford	9.01 mi	2
Evansdale	9.84 mi	2	371^st

See the top IA Iowa cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Iowa Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.