Des Moines Public Schools COVID-19 dashboard provides update on cases

Des Moines Public Schools has tracked 85 positive cases of COVID-19 among its staff and students

Des Moines Public Schools has tracked 85 positive cases of COVID-19 among its staff and students — including 23 new cases Monday, according to the district’s new coronavirus dashboard.

The dashboard will be updated daily using self-reported data from staff and families.

As of Monday, 40 staff members and 45 students have tested positive. That includes 15 elementary school, 12 middle school and 17 high school students.

The daily count is meant to provide a snapshot of the COVID-19 situation within the district, said Phil Roeder, Des Moines schools’ spokesperson. Teachers and other staff will report positive test results using an online form and families can contact their school’s nurse. Des Moines schools had a similar tracker last year. 

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The new tracker goes back to Aug. 12, the district said. The first day of school was Wednesday.  

Water fountains remain closed at Hanawalt Elementary School on Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2021 in Des Moines, IA.

The district tracks a number of illnesses including strep throat, whooping cough and the flu with the Polk County Health Department, but COVID-19 is the only one it tracks publicly, Roeder said. 

“Our plans are to keep this online for however long it’s necessary,” he said.

The webpage is expected to be “up for the foreseeable future, unfortunately,” he said. 

Des Moines schools joins a number of Iowa school districts in posting the number of cases online. 

Related:Des Moines parents’ emotions run the gamut from happy to nervous on the first day of school amid COVID

Iowa City, Ames, Gilbert, Ankeny, Southeast Polk and Bondurant-Farrar school districts all have webpages devoted to tracking positive cases.

Samantha Hernandez covers education for the Register. Reach her at or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at or Facebook at .