The Iowa Department of Education sets the standards for all public institutions of education in Iowa and accredits private as well as public schools. It is headquartered in Des Moines.[1]

Organization

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As of 2020, the Iowa Department of Education consisted of 8 bureaus and works with the oversight of the 11 member Board of Education.[2]

History

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The Board of Education was founded in 1857.[3]

In the 2019-2020 school year 93 percent of public school children in Iowa attended school in their neighborhood school district.[4] Prior to 2021, there were only 2 charter schools in Iowa. After Governor Kim Reynolds signed two bills about establishing and operating new charter schools in May 2021, three more were founded in Union, Iowa, Hamburg, Iowa and Des Moines. In 2023, the department received 8 more charter school applications for the 2024-25 School Year, one in Oakmont, three in Cedar Rapids, and four in Des Moines.[5]

Since 2019, the Department of Education has used the Iowa Statewide Assessment for Student Progress (ISASP) since 2023, it has administered the National Assessment of Educational Progress and since.[6] In 2019, the board allocated $2.7 million for school districts and $300,000 for accredited nonpublic schools.[7]

Department Directors

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  • Chad Aldis, until 2023
  • McKenzie Snow, 2023- present[8]

Bibliography

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Notes

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Inline references

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Secondary

  • Covington, Nick (November 2, 2022). "Iowans Deserve Better Than "School Choice"". Bleeding Heartland. Retrieved May 15, 2024.  .

Primary

General references

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  • Aurner, Clarence Ray (1863–1948). History of Education in Iowa. Iowa City: State Historical Society of Iowa.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) Retrieved April 22, 2024. OCLC 1690178 (all editions).
    1. Vol. 1. 1914 – via Google Books (Michigan).  .
    2. Vol. 2. 1914 – via Internet Archive (Harvard).  .
    3. Vol. 3. 1914 – via Google Books (University of California).  .
    4. Vol. 4. 1916 – via Google Books (Michigan).  .
    5. Vol. 5. State Historical Society of Iowa. 1920 – via Internet Archive (American Foundation for the Blind).  .
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