New data shows 19.5% of the applications for new, state-funded accounts to cover private school expenses are for students who live in the two largest counties in the Des Moines metro.
By last Friday, 18,627 Education Savings Account applications had been approved. About a thousand applications are pending, waiting on a parent or guardian to confirm their annual income is at or below 300% of the federal poverty line.
Data released by the Iowa Department of Education shows how many approved applications came from each county. Over 3100 are for residents in Iowa’s largest county, Polk County, and about 500 more were for private school students who live in neighboring Dallas County.
Just over six percent of approved applications came from northwest Iowa’s Sioux County, which is Iowa’s 19th largest county. Linn County, which includes the Cedar Rapids-Marion metro, accounted for about seven percent of the approved ESA applications.
While applications have been approved, parents have to secure enrolmment in a private school for their child and the state will announce this fall how many of the state-funded accounts have been activated. A previous state report indicated about 60% of the applications for the $7600 in state funding were for students already enrolled in private school.
There are only three counties where no state-funded Education Savings Accounts applications have been approved. They are Decatur and Ringgold Counties along the Missouri border in southern Iowa, and Louisa County along the Mississippi River in southeast Iowa.
Here is the county level data released by the Iowa Department of Education:
As of August 4, students have been approved for ESAs in 96 of Iowa’s 99 counties.
Polk County 3,144
Linn County 1,318
Scott County 1,306
Sioux County 1,183
Black Hawk County 942
Woodbury County 916
Dubuque County 882
Johnson County 572
Dallas County 505
Carroll County 427
Plymouth County 411
Pottawattamie County 383
Webster County 369
Cerro Gordo County 338
Marion County 297
Delaware County 282
O’Brien County 250
Marshall County 231
Clinton County 217
Lee County 212
Warren County 197
Lyon County 196
Mahaska County 188
Kossuth County 183
Boone County 170
Winneshiek County 168
Muscatine County 159
Des Moines County 157
Buena Vista County 152
Crawford County 152
Jackson County 145
Jasper County 144
Clay County 142
Washington County 140
Bremer County 118
Floyd County 113
Alamakee County 113
Story County 112
Jefferson County 112
Wapello County 111
Jones County 111
Buchanan County 93
Howard County 87
Humboldt County 83
Palo Alto County 75
Benton County 71
Iowa County 64
Poweshiek County 55
Union County 52
Shelby County 49
Hamilton County 49
Chickasaw County 46
Page County 46
Pocahontas County 43
Fayette County 37
Madison County 35
Calhoun County 30
Sac County 29
Winnebago County 27
Franklin County 26
Butler County 26
Clayton County 25
Cedar County 23
Grundy County 21
Mills County 21
Henry County 20
Osceola County 18
Hancock County 17
Hardin County 17
Cherokee County 17
Adair County 15
Ida County 14
Monona County 13
Dickinson County 12
Harrison County 10
Green County 9
Worth County 8
Lucas County 7
Audubon County 7
Davis County 7
Wright County 7
Tama County 7
Keokuk County 6
Adams County 5
Van Buren County 4
Taylor County 4
Appanoose County 3
Guthrie County 3
Mitchell County 3
Fremont County 2
Wayne County 2
Monroe County 2
Montgomery County 2
Cass County 2
Clarke County 2
Emmet County 1