South DSM News

There were 5,195 students enrolled in Marion County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 2.2% less than the previous year, according to the Iowa Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed at the time, 51.2% identified as male, 48.7% as female, and 0.1% identified themselves as non-binary or did not specify their gender.

Data also showed that white students made up 90% of the student body, the largest percentage in Marion County schools, followed by Hispanic students with 4.1%, 3.2% multiracial, 1.1% Black, 1% Asian, 0.3% Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 0.2% Native American.

Pella High School had the highest enrollment among Marion County’s 16 schools in the 2023-24 school year, welcoming 791 students.

Public school enrollment in Iowa remained relatively stable in the 2024-25 school year, with 480,665 students, a slight decrease of 0.63% compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, enrollment in accredited nonpublic schools grew by nearly 10%, reaching 39,356 students, up from 36,195. This increase was partially driven by the Students First Education Savings (ESA) program, with 27,866 students utilizing ESAs at nonpublic schools.

Rank	School name	School district	Total enrollment in 2022-23	Total enrollment in 2023-24	% change
1	Pella High School	Pella Comm	764	791	3.5%
2	Knoxville High School	Knoxville Comm	500	503	0.6%
3	Jefferson Intermediate School	Pella Comm	526	502	-4.6%
4	Madison Elementary School	Pella Comm	423	413	-2.4%
5	Pleasantville Elementary School	Pleasantville Comm	388	383	-1.3%
6	Pella Middle School	Pella Comm	382	363	-5%
7	West Elementary School	Knoxville Comm	355	345	-2.8%
8	Northstar Elementary School	Knoxville Comm	341	342	0.3%
9	Knoxville Middle School	Knoxville Comm	368	324	-12%
10	Lincoln Elementary School	Pella Comm	275	262	-4.7%
11	Pleasantville High School	Pleasantville Comm	244	245	0.4%
12	Twin Cedars Junior-Senior High School	Twin Cedars Comm	156	159	1.9%
13	Twin Cedars Elementary School	Twin Cedars Comm	167	154	-7.8%
14	Melcher-Dallas High School	Melcher-Dallas Comm	153	145	-5.2%
15	Melcher-Dallas Elementary School	Melcher-Dallas Comm	156	138	-11.5%
16	Pleasantville Middle School	Pleasantville Comm	114	126	10.5%