Monthly Archives: June 2016

Jun 30

Map of Iowa school enrollment changes, 2001-2015

Posted on Thursday, June 30, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

I have created a color-coded map of Iowa that shows changes in certified enrollment between 2001-02 and 2015-16. Certified enrollment is not a direct correlation with head count, because of certain formulas, but it’s the number used for all state … Continue reading →

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Jun 29

Iowa’s largest enrollment gainers, 2001-2015

Posted on Wednesday, June 29, 2016, at 10:10 AM by Jeff

Statewide student enrollment over the past decade and a half tells a different story than a district-by-district breakdown: Rural areas continue to be drained of students while the gains are concentrated in the suburbs. By the raw certified enrollment total, … Continue reading →

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Jun 28

Smallest districts of 1996 by enrollment — where are they now?

Posted on Tuesday, June 28, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

I have a map of the state of Iowa’s school districts as they were in the 1996-97 school year. As with any district map, it doesn’t reflect what sharing arrangements were at the time, but counting up the numbers then … Continue reading →

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Jun 27

Largest one-high school areas in Iowa

Posted on Monday, June 27, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

This is a list of the top 10 places in Iowa, by size, served by one high school, in five-year increments. In most cases, it involves whole-grade sharing followed some time later by consolidation, but in some cases there is … Continue reading →

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Jun 25

A note for summer parade organizers

Posted on Saturday, June 25, 2016, at 10:08 AM by Jeff

PUT THE HORSES LAST.

Posted in Tama County | Comments Off on A note for summer parade organizers
Jun 24

Updates to the index page on the blog’s fifth anniversary

Posted on Friday, June 24, 2016, at 10:04 AM by Jeff

May 10, 2005: IA 98 is expected to be turned over to Van Buren County July 1. There’s a front door to this place, although it has less action than the blog page. I haven’t done major work on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous | Comments Off on Updates to the index page on the blog’s fifth anniversary
Jun 23

The rise of the 400-square-mile high school, part 4

Posted on Thursday, June 23, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

October 3, 2015: Harmony High School, a one-story building at the intersection of J46 and W46, will become the sole building for Harmony this fall, with all elementary students relocating here from Bonaparte. Junior high and high school students will go … Continue reading →

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Jun 22

The rise of the 400-square-mile high school, part 3

Posted on Wednesday, June 22, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

July 25, 2012: The cornerstone of the Boxholm school, last serving as Southeast Webster-Grand Junior High. The Boxholm school is not currently in use. By the summer of 2013, residents of the Corwith-Wesley district knew their high school was a … Continue reading →

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Jun 21

The rise of the 400-square-mile high school, part 2

Posted on Tuesday, June 21, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

December 28, 2008: Every window in the Russell school building was boarded up shortly after the district was forcibly dissolved. Students in Russell now go to Chariton, which encompasses about 85% of Lucas County. Lucas County was the home of … Continue reading →

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Jun 20

The rise of the 400-square-mile high school, part 1

Posted on Monday, June 20, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

First in a series on the geography of, and changes to, rural Iowa school districts in the past 55 years, with emphasis on the last 15. For nearly 50 years the number of places in Iowa where one high school … Continue reading →

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