Whittier Elementary School

Q: Is Whittier Elementary School a good school?

Whittier Elementary School ranks 307 th of 557 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Summary:

Whittier Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Indianola, Iowa, serving grades PK-5 with a student population of 417. The school is part of the Indianola Community School District, which is ranked 143 out of 309 districts in Iowa and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Whittier Elementary has generally performed well on the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) tests, with proficiency rates often exceeding the state and district averages, especially in mathematics. For example, in 2023-2024, the school's 3rd grade math proficiency rate was 82.1%, compared to the state average of 76.3% and the district average of 82.6%. The school has a strong history of high rankings and ratings from SchoolDigger, ranking as high as 78th out of 567 Iowa elementary schools in 2017-2018 and maintaining a 4-star rating out of 5 from 2014-2015 to 2020-2021, before dropping to a 3-star rating in the last two school years.

While Whittier Elementary has a strong academic performance history, its statewide ranking and SchoolDigger rating have declined in recent years. Additionally, the school has a relatively low percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 21.14% in 2020-2021 to 29.5% in 2022-2023, which is lower than the nearby Emerson Elementary (36.09%) and Wilder Elementary (39.14%) schools. When comparing Whittier Elementary to other nearby schools in the Indianola Community School District, it generally performs better academically, particularly in mathematics, but schools like Irving Elementary have consistently outperformed Whittier in both English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency rates.

Detail:

Public PK, KG-5

1306 W Salem
Indianola, IA 50125

(515) 961-9570

District: Indianola Community School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
307^th of 557 Iowa Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $12,658

Students who attend Whittier Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Indianola Middle School
High:	Indianola High School

Student/teacher ratio: 17.7

Number of students: 397

Racial breakdown:

White:

88.7%

Hispanic:

5.0%

Two or more races:

5.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 29.7%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Whittier Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Whittier Elementary School ranks worse than 55.1% of elementary schools in Iowa. It also ranks 3^rd among 4 ranked elementary schools in the Indianola Community School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 53.36. (See more...)

Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: White (88.7%), Hispanic (5%), two or more races (5%). (See more...)

Compare Details 29.7% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Whittier Elementary School is 17.7, which is the highest among 4 elementary schools in the Indianola Community School District! (See more...)

Compare Whittier Elementary School employs 22.4 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Whittier Elementary School is $12,658, which is the 2^nd highest among 4 elementary schools in the Indianola Community School District.

Schooldigger Rankings:

Whittier Elementary School was not ranked this year due to insufficient test score data.

Indianola Community School District:

SchoolDigger ranks Indianola Community School District 143^rd of 309 Iowa school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

Read all reviews and ratings detail for Whittier Elementary School.

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Rank History for Whittier Elementary School

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Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IA State Percentile
2012	65.63	207^th	626	66.9%
2013	65.05	219^th	624	64.9%
2014	67.70	198^th	603	67.2%
2015	75.62	115^th	616	81.3%
2016	78.10	87^th	599	85.5%
2017	77.93	92^nd	574	84.0%
2018	78.78	78^th	567	86.2%
2019	70.29	172^nd	603	71.5%
2021	69.41	162^nd	567	71.4%
2022	55.66	285^th	574	50.3%
2023	59.80	249^th	565	55.9%
2024	53.36	307^th	557	44.9%

See the entire list of Iowa Elementary School Rankings!

Data source: test scores: Iowa Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

Data source: Iowa Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)

100%

Reviews:

by a parent
Friday, December 22, 2017

Normaly when i do reviews its negitive but Whittier Elementary School has went above and beyond helping my son and me plain an simple Close Quote

Enrollment information for Whittier Elementary School

Compare

Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	335	1	1	3	0	n/a	n/a	0	340
1989	340	1	1	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	342
1990	332	0	2	3	0	n/a	n/a	0	337
1991	323	0	5	5	2	n/a	n/a	0	335
1992	337	0	6	1	0	n/a	n/a	0	344
1993	329	2	3	3	1	n/a	n/a	0	338
1994	311	5	4	1	2	n/a	n/a	0	323
1995	332	2	1	3	0	n/a	n/a	0	338
1996	332	2	1	3	0	n/a	n/a	0	338
1997	437	3	1	3	1	n/a	n/a	0	445
1998	435	5	0	3	1	n/a	n/a	0	444
1999	433	0	4	5	1	n/a	n/a	0	443
2000	453	1	2	3	1	n/a	n/a	-37	423
2001	407	1	3	1	1	n/a	n/a	0	413
2002	385	2	3	5	0	n/a	n/a	0	395
2003	385	2	3	5	0	n/a	n/a	0	395
2004	398	5	2	4	0	n/a	n/a	0	409
2005	406	4	1	4	0	n/a	n/a	0	415
2006	452	4	4	4	1	n/a	n/a	0	465
2007	441	4	0	1	1	n/a	n/a	0	447
2008	452	4	1	5	2	n/a	n/a	0	464
2009	315	4	4	3	0	n/a	n/a	0	326
2010	332	1	3	6	0	0	3	0	345
2011	395	3	0	6	0	0	7	0	411
2012	394	1	1	15	0	0	6	0	417
2013	406	2	1	9	0	0	9	0	427
2014	381	3	0	21	1	0	6	0	412
2015	261	2	0	10	0	0	4	0	277
2016	376	2	4	13	0	0	9	0	404
2017	410	2	3	11	0	0	17	0	443
2018	411	1	1	15	0	1	10	0	439
2019	400	5	0	13	0	0	16	0	434
2020	433	5	0	9	0	0	12	0	459
2021	377	3	0	8	0	0	14	0	402
2022	386	2	1	20	0	0	18	0	427
2023	366	5	1	27	0	0	18	0	417
2024	352	4	1	20	0	0	20	0	397

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Whittier Elementary School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	340	18.9	17.9	8.2
1989	342	18.4	18.5	6.1
1990	337	17.0	19.8	5
1991	335	17.2	19.4	5.7
1992	344	18.0	19.1	8.7
1993	338	17.5	19.3	4.4
1994	323	17.3	18.7	6.2
1995	338	18.2	18.6	5
1996	338	18.2	18.6	5
1997	445	24.6	18.1	7.6
1998	444	25.0	17.8	9.9
1999	443	26.9	16.5	12.4
2000	423	28.2	15.0	11.3
2001	413	28.8	14.3	12.6
2002	395	29.6	13.3	20.8
2003	395	29.6	13.3	20.8
2004	409	28.9	14.2	20.5
2005	415	29.8	13.9	17.3
2006	465	31.5	14.8	21.7
2007	447	30.0	14.9	24.6
2008	464	31.0	15.0	23.1
2009	326	27.1	12.0	28.5
2010	345	26.0	13.2	29.3
2011	411	22.1	18.5	25.1
2012	417	20.3	20.4	35.7
2013	427	20.7	20.5	28.8
2014	412	21.9	18.7	30.8
2015	277	23.0	12.0	31
2016	404	24.0	16.8	26.7
2017	443	23.4	18.9	31.8
2018	439	21.6	20.3	11.6
2019	434	21.6	20.0	30.6
2020	459	22.9	19.9	26.1
2021	402	22.4	17.9	21.1
2022	427	24.1	17.7	23.7
2023	417	23.1	18.0	29.5
2024	397	22.4	17.7	29.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Whittier Elementary School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	340	18.9	17.9	8.2
1989	342	18.4	18.5	6.1
1990	337	17.0	19.8	5
1991	335	17.2	19.4	5.7
1992	344	18.0	19.1	8.7
1993	338	17.5	19.3	4.4
1994	323	17.3	18.7	6.2
1995	338	18.2	18.6	5
1996	338	18.2	18.6	5
1997	445	24.6	18.1	7.6
1998	444	25.0	17.8	9.9
1999	443	26.9	16.5	12.4
2000	423	28.2	15.0	11.3
2001	413	28.8	14.3	12.6
2002	395	29.6	13.3	20.8
2003	395	29.6	13.3	20.8
2004	409	28.9	14.2	20.5
2005	415	29.8	13.9	17.3
2006	465	31.5	14.8	21.7
2007	447	30.0	14.9	24.6
2008	464	31.0	15.0	23.1
2009	326	27.1	12.0	28.5
2010	345	26.0	13.2	29.3
2011	411	22.1	18.5	25.1
2012	417	20.3	20.4	35.7
2013	427	20.7	20.5	28.8
2014	412	21.9	18.7	30.8
2015	277	23.0	12.0	31
2016	404	24.0	16.8	26.7
2017	443	23.4	18.9	31.8
2018	439	21.6	20.3	11.6
2019	434	21.6	20.0	30.6
2020	459	22.9	19.9	26.1
2021	402	22.4	17.9	21.1
2022	427	24.1	17.7	23.7
2023	417	23.1	18.0	29.5
2024	397	22.4	17.7	29.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Whittier Elementary School

Year	Expenditures from Federal Funds	Expenditures from State and Local Funds	Total Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019	$258 (2.0%)	$12,401 (98.0%)	$12,658

Data source: Iowa Department of Education

Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Whittier Elementary School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Rank Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Ranks 172^nd of 603 Elementary schools	Ranks 249^th of 565 Elementary schools	15.5%

Test Scores

	% proficient Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	% proficient Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Whittier Elementary School)	58.9	66.7	7.8%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Indianola Community School District)	61.8	69.9	8.1%
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Iowa)	65.3	66.3	1%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Whittier Elementary School)	78.6	69	9.6%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Indianola Community School District)	75	81.6	6.6%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Iowa)	71.7	75.3	3.6%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Whittier Elementary School)	91.7	70.4	21.3%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Indianola Community School District)	83.3	74	9.3%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Iowa)	70.5	73.1	2.6%
4th Grade Mathematics (Whittier Elementary School)	85.4	72.2	13.2%
4th Grade Mathematics (Indianola Community School District)	80.4	78.8	1.6%
4th Grade Mathematics (Iowa)	72.5	72.9	0.4%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Whittier Elementary School)	75.5	82.4	6.9%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Indianola Community School District)	74.8	74.5	0.3%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Iowa)	67.3	68.3	1%
5th Grade Mathematics (Whittier Elementary School)	83	84.3	1.3%
5th Grade Mathematics (Indianola Community School District)	80.1	83.7	3.6%
5th Grade Mathematics (Iowa)	69.4	71.3	1.9%

Student Body

	Number of students Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Number of students Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Total Students	434	417	3.9%
African American	5	5
American Indian	0	0
Asian	0	1
Hispanic	13	27	107.7%
Pacific Islander	0	0
White	400	366	8.5%
Two or More Races	16	18	12.5%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	30.6%	29.5%	1.1%

Schools Near Whittier Elementary School

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 Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 6th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Whittier Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1306 W Salem	Indianola	50125	Warren County	Indianola Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 961-9570	397	22	17.7	29.7%	352 (88.7%)	4 (1.0%)	20 (5.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (5.0%)	53.4	307^th of 557 public elementary schools	44.9%		59.8	249^th of 565 public elementary schools	55.9%	58	69.2	75.6	70.9		82.1	73.2	70.9		50.9	$12,658	$258	$12,401
Irving Elementary School	Public	K-5	500 W Clinton	Indianola	50125	Warren County	Indianola Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 961-9560	392	26	15.3	16.8%	368 (93.9%)	2 (0.5%)	11 (2.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.6%)	84.9	36^th of 557 public elementary schools	93.5%		84.5	43^rd of 565 public elementary schools	92.4%	7	78.8	88.7	87.8		89.4	95.8	86.5		68.9	$10,971	$101	$10,870
Wilder Elementary School	Public	K-5	2303 W. Euclid	Indianola	50125	Warren County	Indianola Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 961-9540	471	37	12.6	38.6%	418 (88.7%)	5 (1.1%)	22 (4.7%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.1%)	42	382^nd of 557 public elementary schools	31.4%		55.2	282^nd of 565 public elementary schools	50.1%	100	53.8	64.6	63.2		80.0	73.8	71.1		51.3	$13,704	$809	$12,895
Emerson Elementary School	Public	K-5	1109 E Euclid	Indianola	50125	Warren County	Indianola Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 961-9550	415	32	12.9	40.5%	350 (84.3%)	7 (1.7%)	35 (8.4%)	4 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	17 (4.1%)	64.1	207^th of 557 public elementary schools	62.8%		53.3	303^rd of 565 public elementary schools	46.4%	96	66.2	83.1	66.7		79.4	81.5	81.5		64.2	$12,431	$403	$12,028
Martensdale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	390 Burlington	Martensdale	50160	Warren County	Martensdale-St Marys Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 764-2621	316	22	14.3	20.6%	290 (91.8%)	1 (0.3%)	13 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.8%)	81	64^th of 557 public elementary schools	88.5%		79	89^th of 565 public elementary schools	84.2%	25	76.3	85.0	83.7	86.0	86.8	82.5	88.4	86.0	74.4	$12,243	$549	$11,694
Southeast Warren Primary	Public	PK, KG-3	316 N 5th	Milo	50166	Warren County	Southeast Warren Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(641) 942-6216	129	10	12.3	34.1%	127 (98.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	77.3				90.9					$12,545	$574	$11,972
Oviatt Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-1	1130 North Avenue	Norwalk	50211	Warren County	Norwalk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 981-1005	579	39	14.9	17.8%	491 (84.8%)	14 (2.4%)	39 (6.7%)	4 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (5.0%)								(n/a)										$14,180	$322	$13,858
Orchard Hills Elementary	Public	2-3	1130 W North Avenue	Norwalk	50211	Warren County	Norwalk Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 981-1855	526	36	14.7	24.0%	439 (83.5%)	11 (2.1%)	41 (7.8%)	5 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (5.5%)								(n/a)	74.7				84.7
Carlisle Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-3	430 School St	Carlisle	50047	Warren County	Carlisle Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 989-0339	725	52	13.9	32.4%	575 (79.3%)	10 (1.4%)	82 (11.3%)	30 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (3.9%)								(n/a)	69.1				79.6					$11,109	$400	$10,709
Studebaker Elementary School	Public	K-5	300 E County Line Rd	Des Moines	50315	Polk County	Des Moines Independent Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(515) 242-8436	553	39	14.3	80.3%	179 (32.4%)	88 (15.9%)	226 (40.9%)	21 (3.8%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	36 (6.5%)	4	543^rd of 557 public elementary schools	2.5%		4.7	543^rd of 565 public elementary schools	3.9%		34.4	50.0	36.2		53.3	38.6	44.9		26.1	$15,051	$1,299	$13,752

Frequently Asked Questions about Whittier Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of Whittier Elementary School?

Students at Whittier Elementary School are 89% White, 5% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 1% African American.

What district is Whittier Elementary School in?

Indianola Community School District

How many students attend Whittier Elementary School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 397 students attended Whittier Elementary School.

Is Whittier Elementary School a good school?

Whittier Elementary School ranks 307^th of 557 Iowa elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Whittier Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Whittier Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Indianola Middle School
High : Indianola High School

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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.