Dowling Catholic High School
1400 Buffalo Rd, West Des Moines, IA 50265Open, per Google (checked Sep 20, 2026)
Key facts
- Tuition, 2026-27
- $16,272
- Grades
- 9-12
- Students (K-12)
- 1,354
- Students per teacher
- 14.6
- Affiliation
- Roman Catholic
- From West Des Moines center
- 4.4 miles
Can you use Students First ESA here?
✓ On the official Iowa ESA eligible (accredited) list
- State list
- Includes this school
- Applying
- The full-year window for 2026-27 ran April 16 to June 30, 2026. A second, half-year window (House File 2754, 2026) runs from 8:00 a.m. October 15 to 11:59 p.m. November 15, 2026, for a $4,074 spring ESA. A student whose full-year application was denied or not completed may apply; a student who received a full-year ESA may not.
Source: the official list, read October 26, 2026.
What you would pay here
- Tuition
- $16,272 (grades 9 to 12, 2026-27)
- Award
- about $8,148
- Left to pay
- about $8,124, before fees
Award $8,148 Left to pay $8,124
- Tuition: the school’s website, checked October 1, 2026.
- Award: Iowa Department of Education, Education Savings Accounts, read October 9, 2026.
- Lowest listed grade band; fees and aid not included. Change the numbers
School facts
- Teachers
- 93
- Student body
- Coeducational
- Diocese
- Diocese of Des Moines, IA
- Boys and girls
- 53% boys, 47% girls
- Go on to a 4-year college
- 97%
- Setting
- City
- Member of
- National Catholic Educational Association
- Accreditation, state list
- Accredited by the State of Iowa (state accreditation), per the Iowa Department of Education 2026-27 nonpublic school building directory, address file of September 30, 2026.
- Accreditation: the state’s list.
- School facts, kindergarten to grade 12: U.S. Department of Education, NCES Private School Survey 2023-24, read September 20, 2026.
Where this comes from. Something wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.
Students and school year
Enrollment over time
- 2019-20 to 2023-24
- 1,415 to 1,354, down 61 (4%)
- Path
- Fell in each survey (1,389 in 2021-22)
Students by grade, 2023-24
- Largest grade
- Grade 9 (364)
- Smallest grade
- Grade 12 (320)
- Average a grade
- About 339
The school year
- Days in the school year
- 175
- Length of the school day
- 7 hours
- Hours of school a year
- about 1,230
- Classes, 2023-24
- In person
- Library or media center
- Yes
- Year, against Iowa
- 2 days shorter than the 177-day median of 180 schools we list
- School day, against Iowa
- About the median of 7 hours (180 schools we list)
How it compares
- Students per teacher
- 14.6 here; median 13.9 at 9 IA secondary schools
- Size in Polk County
- Largest of the 18 schools we list
Student body, 2023-24
Shares of K-12 students by race and ethnicity, as NCES reports them.
- Grades, school year and student body: U.S. Department of Education, NCES Private School Survey 2023-24, read September 20, 2026.
- Earlier counts: NCES Private School Survey 2019-20 and 2021-22, read October 14, 2026.
- Comparisons: the private schools ChoiceFunded lists, as of this page’s last update.
Dowling Catholic High School tuition, and what Students First ESA pays
- Grades 9 to 12, 2026-27
- $16,272
- Required fees
- $400 a year
What is left after the award: worked out at the top of this page.
Tuition from Dowling Catholic High School's website, checked October 1, 2026.
Iowa Students First Education Savings Account Education savings account
- Award
- $8,148 per student for 2026-27
- How it varies
- Paid in two equal installments, fall and spring. New for 2026-27: a half-year ESA of $4,074 for the spring semester. Homeschooled students do not qualify.
Figures read from each program’s official pages, October 11, 2026. Sources and how to apply
What would you pay at Dowling Catholic High School?
Use $0 or more.
Tuition and fees Students First ESA pays You pay per year Spread over 10 months
- Tuition filled in: the lowest published price we list (grades 9 to 12, 2026-27), plus required fees.
- Award filled in: the 2026-27 Students First ESA award for that grade band.
- Change them for your child’s grade.
- Ask the school
- Whether its published 2026-27 tuition is still current; whether it still takes Students First ESA for 2026-27; its application deadline. More questions to ask
Other private schools nearby
| School | Grades | Students | Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airazi Academy ✓ | PreK-5 | 58 | <1 |
| Sacred Heart School ✓ | PreK-8 | 497 | 1 |
| St. Theresa Catholic School ✓ | PreK-8 | 221 | 1 |
| Mt Olive Lutheran School ✓ | PreK-8 | 191 | 2 |
| Montessori Children's House | PreK-2 | 13 | 2 |
| Empigo Academy ✓ | On the state list; not in the federal survey | 2 | |
| St. Pius X Catholic School ✓ | On the state list; not in the federal survey | 2 | |
| Bergman Academy ✓ | PreK-8 | 281 | 3 |
On the program’s official list Other private schools
Next Students First ESA date: Open now, until November 15, 2026 (2026-27 half-year ESA application window).
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