8012 Maple Dr
Urbandale, IA 50322

As an educator at Karen Acres I couldn't ask for a better place to work. The collaboration between our staff and the constant push to increase our own knowledge if a huge benefit to our students. The test scores on this site are from 3 years ago and our scores from the last 2 years have increased dramatically. The PTO is welcoming and does a great job bringing KA families together through their many family fun nights.

Lots of fights in the hallways, students skipping class and causing disruptions for others that are trying to get work done in the classroom, disproportionate funding goes to athletics instead of the arts, and teachers are not given much respect from administrators. Failing students often form gangs and wreak havoc on all school property. The bathrooms are typically only partially functional on any given day and are poorly maintained. On the bright side, there's many excellent teachers, but of course there's a few stinkers as you'll have at any school. There are hundreds of kids failing multiple classes, and they seem to only feel apathy towards it. The school environment (if you can't do yourself a favor and go to class) really doesn't do these kids any favors as it's impossible for staff to keep the 50-60 people that always skip class from escaping and causing problems. Lots of these kids don't have great home lives and the school doesn't do much to make an environment where they must do the right thing to continue being there. 3/5 stars, average high school experience.

Teachers are shuffled to various subjects and sometimes don't have knowledge or passion for their assigned subject. One language arts teacher shared repeatedly that she was a science teacher. Math teacher explained that he didn't know material well since he taught a different subject previously. Track-driven and not responsive to students' learning needs. Very limited resources for advanced learners, who are told to use their cell phones "quietly" during free time.