School district changes in Iowa

When tracking what happens to Iowa's school districts, the Iowa Department of Education's list of reorganizations doesn't tell the whole story. While the department maintains the official list, and its records are law, schools often start whole-grade-sharing agreements years before being recognized as "one" district. In such an agreement, the districts remain legally separate but junior high students go to one and high school students go to the other. For example, Aplington-Parkersburg has been "Aplington-Parkersburg" since 1992, but only legally recognized as one district beginning in 2004. Others, such as Woden-Crystal Lake-Titonka, could never officially reorganize because their combined enrollment is below 300 - which is why that school will cease to exist in 2011. (In fact, W-CL and T are still in separate Area Education Agencies.)

In addition, that's not all that happens to small-town schools. As districts merge and enrollment shrinks, buildings that were reduced to junior-high-only or elementary-only are closed. Others are torn down. Example: Meservey's building became a junior high in 1963 with the formation of Meservey-Thornton, was closed in 1983 when everyone went to Thornton, and was torn down in the early '90s.

The list below relies on news articles, the Department of Education's directory, and other sources to track changes. It's organized by school year (July 1 to June 30). The modern age of school districts in Iowa began in 1965, when the Legislature passed a law requiring that all areas of the state be part of a school district with a high school, finally ending the era of one-room schools. That law was modified slightly in 1983 to open the door to whole-grade-sharing arrangements, which is why some districts today can be elementary-only.

"Official reorganization effective July 1": This is what shows up in the Department of Education records. This can come a few or many years after "First year for sharing." In most cases only the final name is noted, with the earlier districts in their respective "First year for sharing" line. Official reorganizations before 2000 may only include the final name without more details, unless a previous name wasn't part of the new district, because of the lack of knowledge about earlier sharing.

"First year for sharing": Beginning of whole-grade sharing - what someone in the district would probably consider "the merger" - NOT sports-only modifications or the later official reorganization in the line above. Since 2000, schools often proceed by joining sports teams first, engaging in whole-grade sharing at the same time or within a few years, then having the full merger a few years after that. "A-B, C (D)" indicates that A and B were already a consolidated district, and are starting whole-grade sharing with C, and the new school is known as D. Sometimes this looks redundant, but it's included for completeness. Long-term whole-grade sharing agreements are rarely reshuffled. Aside from WCLT, discussed above, I can only think of one other: CAL and Dows parted ways in 2005. Now, Gilmore City-Bradgate and Twin Rivers of Bode, after decades as Twin River Valley, are splitting up. Also, Allerton and Lineville-Clio were together from 1959-66, according to this history, and/but state records show an "ACL" school district until a name change (back?) to Lineville-Clio in 1987.

"Last year for district": Dissolutions and/or tiny districts that were absorbed into other districts with little or no change in the larger one. Districts that were acting only as de facto K-6 schools are so noted. In the second half of the 20th century, only two districts voluntarily dissolved instead of merged: Boone Valley of Renwick in 1988 and Grand Valley of Grand River in 1998. (Source: Max McElwain, The Only Dance in Iowa, p. 211) In the 21st century, voluntary dissolutions have generally been those of K-6 districts that were sending older students to multiple schools. There have been two forced dissolutions: Hedrick in 1991 and Russell in 2007.

"Last year for high school": Districts that go K-6 or K-8 but do not merge. Parentheses indicate where 7-12 or 9-12 will go.

"Last year for building": Last school year classes were held. The town is where the building is, and the school in parentheses is the district whose building is involved.

"Torn down": Old buildings demolished as seen in aerial photos from the Iowa Geographic Map Server, 1990-1994-2002-2004 and later. These photos could be taken as late as September, but I'm sticking with the July-June pattern unless I know otherwise. "Original building only" means the two- or three-story 1910s-30s structure came down while addition(s) remained intact, "except gym" means only the gymnasium addition was left.

Links added where possible, but link rot happens. Once you start backtracking into the 20th century, though, it gets harder to find information beyond the official reorganizations, so e-mailed contributions/corrections of information would be appreciated.

1985-86

1987-88

1988-89

1989-90

1990-91

1991-92

1992-93

1993-94

Hubbard-Radcliffe's official merger came the school year after winning the final six-on-six girls' basketball championship.

1994-95

1995-96

1996-97

During this school year, 24 legally recognized districts had an enrollment under 250, but only about half a dozen had their own high school. The rest were in whole-grade sharing with larger districts or each other.

1997-98

1998-99

1999-2000

AGWSR may be the most recent (and final?) case in which the two districts went from sharing nothing to sharing both sports and grade levels.

2000-01

Torn down in the 1990s (on 1990/94 photos, but not 2002): Argyle (original building only), Burt (original building only), Chapin, Crystal Lake (original building only), Grand River, Hartwick, Hedrick (original building only), Kellerton (except gym), Ledyard, Lu Verne, Meservey, Moravia, Paton, St. Marys (except gym), Van Wert (except gym), Webb

2001-02

*The I-35 School District Elementary Handbook (PDF) states that a K-8 building was built in Truro in 2001-02. Presumably the other sites, St. Charles as K-4 and New Virginia 5-8, closed at the end of that year or 2003.

2002-03

Torn down between mid-2002 and mid-2004: Decatur City, Green Mountain, Keokuk (Keokuk Middle School/original HS), Smithland, Rembrandt (except gym), Sioux Center (original building only). Also, original building in Hudson torn down, but all later additions remain in use as JH/elementary - see the bottom of my IA 58 South page.

2003-04

2004-05

2005-06
During this school year, 32 legally recognized districts had an enrollment under 250. Of those, only eight were east of I-35, and of those eight, only three - Lineville-Clio, Moulton-Udell, and Russell - had their own high school.

2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
Between 2004-05 and 2009-10, Waukee's enrollment growth was equivalent to absorbing these school districts: Springville, Valley of Elgin, Clay Central-Everly, Corning, and Riceville. (Certified enrollment, +/-5) Over the entire decade (2000-01 to 2009-10), Waukee added a total number of students nearly equal to the entire lineup of central Iowa's 2009-10 football Class A District 7. (3447 vs. 3467)

2010-11
Between 2005-06 and 2010-11, Ankeny's enrollment growth was equivalent to absorbing these school districts: Albert City-Truesdale, West Bend-Mallard, Essex, Remsen-Union, and Charter Oak-Ute. (Certified enrollment, +/-5)

2011-12

2012-13

*Between 1980 and 2010, Calhoun and Pocahontas counties lost more than 3,800 people. Each.

Page last updated 2/27/12

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