Ames High changing conferneces

[AuH2O]

They should have also fought harder to annex to on the edges, rather than hand all that growth to rural school districts.

1/3 of Ames Middle School is on free or reduced lunch (https://ams.amescsd.org/resources/ames-middle-school-fact-sheet/). That was below 25% less than 15 years ago (https://ams.amescsd.org/resources/ames-middle-school-fact-sheet/). It's a dying school district which is not great news for the long term of the entire community, including the homes with Ames addresses but in different school districts.

The state of Iowa is 39% free and reduced. Iowa City school district is 37%. Cedar Rapids is 53%.

I'm not sure what you are expecting, but Ames is experiencing a somewhat micro version of what some of these bigger communities see too. Most growth in the metros is coming from in-state small town Iowa white people that tend to gravitate to smaller, whiter schools. So what?

In the end Ames is the #11 school for STEM, #8 for College prep among Iowa publics. Gilbert is #6 for STEM and #40 for College Prep. Average SAT and ACT scores are better in Ames, and that takes into account that Ames has a lot more lower income students.

The Ames school is really good. If you are a good student, you are going to be in incredible shape going into college.

I suppose pushing to try to annex the north long ago before the growth? I suppose that would've been nice, but we're talking about development that began with Somerset 30 years ago. And Gilbert is the only school getting Ames' growth. In every other direction there aren't any significant housing developments in the city limits or close to city limits that are in other school districts' borders.

 

[3TrueFans]

https://www.iaschoolperformance.gov/ECP/StateDistrictSchool/SchoolRatingsList?Category=48&y=2024

I'm just going to assume that you're misunderstanding something.

 

[CloneFanInKC]

True, but he also could have open enrolled his kids back into the Ames district and for some reason chose not too.

He was concerned about his kids “being in his shadow” if they went to Ames High.

 

[ISUTex]

They are.

The Mississippi Valley is Waterloo West, Cedar Falls, Western Dubuque, Dubuque Senior, Dubuque Hempstead, Dubuque Wahlert, CR Jefferson, CR Washington, CR Kennedy, CR Xavier, Linn-Mar, Prairie, Iowa City City High, Iowa City West, Iowa City Liberty.

Ok. That's what I thought they were in, but didn't know if that had changed. Why would Waterloo flirt with moving conferences?

 

[cyclone87]

https://www.iaschoolperformance.gov/ECP/StateDistrictSchool/SchoolRatingsList?Category=48&y=2024

Looks like the Ames schools were all around or above the state averages for last year (2024). The school district has invested a lot in new facilities, including a learning center for kids with behavior and learning difficulties recently (opened last fall). They also were one of the districts to ban cell phones prior to the sate bill doing so (which probably helped things recently). Hopefully things will be improving.

 

[ISUTex]

Is that why test scores at Ames are toward the bottom in the state? What exactly are they preparing students for?

Majoring in art.

 

[ISUTex]

The state of Iowa is 39% free and reduced. Iowa City school district is 37%. Cedar Rapids is 53%.

I'm not sure what you are expecting, but Ames is experiencing a somewhat micro version of what some of these bigger communities see too. Most growth in the metros is coming from in-state small town Iowa white people that tend to gravitate to smaller, whiter schools. So what?

In the end Ames is the #11 school for STEM, #8 for College prep among Iowa publics. Gilbert is #6 for STEM and #40 for College Prep. Average SAT and ACT scores are better in Ames, and that takes into account that Ames has a lot more lower income students.

The Ames school is really good. If you are a good student, you are going to be in incredible shape going into college.

I suppose pushing to try to annex the north long ago before the growth? I suppose that would've been nice, but we're talking about development that began with Somerset 30 years ago. And Gilbert is the only school getting Ames' growth. In every other direction there aren't any significant housing developments in the city limits or close to city limits that are in other school districts' borders.

I think what people are trying to say without saying it is that Gilbert is whiter, richer and smaller. Both schools are good schools. Send your kids where you want. It's a free country.

 

[AuH2O]

Is that why test scores at Ames are toward the bottom in the state? What exactly are they preparing students for?

Probably college? So when Ames has a better SAT and ACT than the surrounding schools, and has high AP participation that's what's being considered.

 

[cyballrulz93]

Pretty sad when Ames High School has to move to a lesser competitive conference.

It's actually a more competitive conference.

Pretty sad when Ames High School has to move to a lesser competitive conference.

 

[AuH2O]

I think what people are trying to say without saying it is that Gilbert is whiter, richer and smaller. Both schools are good schools. Send your kids where you want. It's a free country.

Well, I tried to dance around it long enough until I couldn't avoid it any longer.

Having a high income neighborhood be the core of your enrollment and to be full so you get to determine who gets to open enroll in and doesn't is a nice luxury that very few public schools in Iowa have.

 

[Pat]

They should have also fought harder to annex to on the edges, rather than hand all that growth to rural school districts.

1/3 of Ames Middle School is on free or reduced lunch (https://ams.amescsd.org/resources/ames-middle-school-fact-sheet/). That was below 25% less than 15 years ago (https://ams.amescsd.org/resources/ames-middle-school-fact-sheet/). It's a dying school district which is not great news for the long term of the entire community, including the homes with Ames addresses but in different school districts.

The city annexing land doesn’t change school district boundaries, though.

 

[AltoonaFish]

True, but he also could have open enrolled his kids back into the Ames district and for some reason chose not too.

Why does Campbell send one kid to Ames but not the others? It’s probably based on fit.

For Iowa, Ames is a huge school. Gilbert is a good school and a lot of that is because of size and socio economics. Ames has had a staffing problem especially at the middle school when it comes to para educators and other support staff which is unfair to everyone.

I would have no problems sending my kids to Ames elementary or high. But unless something changed, they would never attend the middle school.

Nevada receives a decent amount of open enrollments and their socio economics are not Ames but definitely closer than Gilbert. I assume Ballard gets a decent amount as well.

As far as athletics go, I would send my kid to any smaller than Ames school just based on opportunity. Academically, anymore many kids can do college online so the belief that only big schools can provide college preparedness anymore is kind of gone.

Now if Colo nesco and Collins Maxwell could get people to go there that would be neat too.

 

[Pope]

It's actually a more competitive conference.

Ames has 327 more students than the biggest school in their new conference. Ames used to compete against Ankeny, Southeast Polk, Waukee, etc. Now they'll compete against Norwalk, Oskaloosa, Pella Christian, etc

Sad.

 

[cycloneG]

Ames has 327 more students than the biggest school in their new conference. Ames used to compete against Ankeny, Southeast Polk, Waukee, etc. Now they'll compete against Norwalk, Oskaloosa, Pella Christian, etc

Sad.

I don't see any of those schools in the conference Ames is leaving.

 

[CloneFan65]

I'm just going to assume that you're misunderstanding something.

Yeah. They appear to be above average in their test scores, so.... But it's a little disappointing as an Ames High grad from around 40 years ago that there has been a decline. At the time we were considered one of the top public high schools in the country in academics.

 

[cycloneG]

Yeah. They appear to be above average in their test scores, so.... But it's a little disappointing as an Ames High grad from around 40 years ago that there has been a decline. At the time we were considered one of the top public high schools in the country in academics.

The entire state has seen a pretty dramatic drop in academic rankings in the last 40 years.

 

[JohnnyAl]

Ames cannot financially compete against the high growth suburbs of DSM. If Ames was more pro growth and development, it'd have 150,000 residents (including students) with multiple high schools and competitive against metro suburban schools.

Lots of kids gonto Gilbert as well. When I was at ames in 90s gilbert was 1A

 

[Angie]

Anyone who hasn't graduated in the past four years may not entirely understand about this "breaking with tradition" - we were in the CIML from 1991-2021, but we've only been in the Iowa Alliance Conference since 2021? That's not a super long time. And we generally are not playing the big Des Moines schools in the IAC because we're more similarly sized with the smaller schools - if you look back through our Bound seasons, you'll see that we're going all over the state most of the time:

Definitely agree. Ames middle school is one of the toughest schools I’ve been too. My kids will not go to Ames. We live in Nevada, but hopefully move before they start school, and Ames isn’t an option.

This is a hot take, and you are totally entitled to your opinion, but AMS is not unsafe. Our eldest is a freshman this year and literally went through all three years with zero incident - but had a TON of great interactions with teachers, staff, clubs, and administration. I think it may be worth talking to some parents of students who are engaged in activities or class and not purposely negative.

 

[jackrabbit]

I looked at MaxPreps and looked at the AHS football seasons from the last 11 seasons. AHS overall record was 46-57 during that time. AHS was 1 - 32 vs DSM area suburban high schools in that time span. AHS was 45-25 vs all other high schools. The last year AHS won more than one game vs DSM area suburban high schools was in 2013 when AHS was 11-1 overall. The lost to Valley in the State Tournament 63-20. That same year the beat SE Polk, Ankeny, A Cent, Johnston and Urbandale.

 

[3TrueFans]

Yeah. They appear to be above average in their test scores, so.... But it's a little disappointing as an Ames High grad from around 40 years ago that there has been a decline. At the time we were considered one of the top public high schools in the country in academics.

40 years ago might as well be a million years ago.