Registration will open for 2018-19 Universal Preschool on Thursday, March 8. Children must be 4-years old on or before Sept. 15, 2018 to qualify. To begin the process of enrolling, click on the headline.

Your child must be five years old on or before September 15 to be eligible for kindergarten. Current Des Moines Public Schools preschool students will receive a letter from your student’s teacher instructing you on how to complete the kindergarten registration process. Please wait for your registration letter before beginning this process. For additional information, click on the headline.

Susie Guest is the powerhouse administrator behind our preschools, which serve more than 2,000 students. Earlier this month, she was honored by the Iowa School Social Workers Association – ISSWA – for her more than three decades of working with and advocating for Des Moines students. Click on the headline to read more.

Thursday morning marked the beginning of a long, exciting adventure for more than 1,500 DMPS preschoolers at four primary centers and six satellite school sites. A mix of excitement, and a few tears, kicked off the morning as parents took pictures and said their goodbyes whiles students navigated new lockers and classrooms. Click here to see … Read more »

Calling all parents! Remember, you are invited to Parent and Child Together Time (PACT time) once a week in your child’s classroom. Check with your child’s teacher to find out the day and time of PACT time for his or her classroom. Parent and Child Together time is a weekly chance to join your child for some fun one-on-one learning activities. … Read more »

Coffee and Connections– drop in for a cup of coffee and a treat! Once a month, each of our four Early Childhood buildings is hosting a get-together for parents. Parents of preschoolers are invited to stop by for a chance to connect with other parents, connect with the school, and connect with community resources. We will … Read more »

Des Moines Public Schools has 19 Head Start classrooms; during the first few days of school the parents in each of these classrooms elect representatives to serve on Head Start Policy Committee. Since its start in 1965, Head Start has recognized the value of including parents as full partners in making decisions that concern them, … Read more »

DMPS Offers Children Free Summer Meals 5/4/2017 Des Moines Public Schools will offer free summer meals to children under the age of 18 as early as June 5. The meals are served at 31 locations throughout the community, with 26 of those locations also offering breakfast. This USDA funded program has been enormously successful, helping … Read more »

At Des Moines Public Schools, we are always looking at how we can do more to support our students, and help everyone succeed. An idea currently being considered is a change in the bell times – or school hours – that we have. The plan would flip the current hours, so elementary students begin the … Read more »

The DMPS Community Legislative Action Team is made up of parents and other community members who recognize the need for greater awareness of how legislative actions affect our schools, and advocate for policies that increase student success. To be successful, this group needs one thing: YOU. It’s important that the voices of parents, grandparents, community … Read more »