The Des Moines School Board (l to r): Rob Barron, Heather Anderson, Cindy Elsbernd (vice chair, Dr. Thomas Ahart (superintendent), Teree Caldwell Johnson (chair), Dionna Langford, Natasha Newcomb, Connie Boesen

The seven members of the Des Moines School Board are elected to four-year terms at elections held on the second Tuesday in September in odd-numbered years. The next school board election will be in September 2017.

The current chair of the Des Moines School Board is Teree Caldwell-Johnson and the vice chair is Cindy Elsbernd.

You can learn more about your representatives on the school board by clicking on their names to the right.

In addition to school board meetings, board members are also busy representing the school district’s interests at the local, state and national level. Board members and the school district work cooperatively with Polk County and the City of Des Moines on various initiatives, and a member of the board serves on the Des Moines Parks & Recreation Board. The school board and district are also actively engaged with community organizations – such as United Way of Central Iowa and the Greater Des Moines Partnership – on a wide range of issues.

The Des Moines School Board is an active member of the Urban Education Network, which represents Iowa’s largest school districts serving more than 40% of the state’s students, and the Council of Great City Schools, which represents the 60 largest school districts in the nation.

Board of Directors
Des Moines Public Schools
2323 Grand Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50312
Phone: 515-242-7713
Email: board@dmschools.org

NOTE: Individuals who write or email the school board should be aware that their correspondence may be subject to examination and copying by others pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 22 of the Code of Iowa.