What we know about Perry High School, the scene of an Iowa school shooting

Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez, Des Moines Register
Updated ·2 min read
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One student was killed and four others were injured on Thursday, Jan. 4 when a 17-year-old student opened fire at Perry High School. The school's principal was also injured.

The gunman died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.

LIVE UPDATES: Investigation continues following Perry School shooting

Here's what we know about Perry, Iowa and the Perry Community School District.

Where is Perry, Iowa? How close is it to Des Moines?

Perry is located in Dallas County. It's about 40 miles northwest of downtown Des Moines.

How big is Perry, Iowa?

According to the latest Census estimate, Perry has 8,008 residents.

What time do classes start at Perry High School?

Thursday, Jan. 4, was the first day of the second semester at Perry High School. Classes were scheduled to start at 7:55 a.m. Police calls were first reported at 7:37 a.m.

More: A history of Iowa school shootings

How many students attend Perry schools?

There are about 1,800 students in the Perry school district.

Are classes still in session at Perry schools?

No. Classes have been canceled at all Perry Community School District schools for Thursday, Jan. 4. Students were evacuated from all buildings and reunited with families. An announcement from the district's communication system said that all staff have been released to go home and have been advised not to return to the building.

The Perry Community School District has canceled classes Friday, Jan. 5, as well, according to its districtwide communication system. Counseling services will be available at the Perry Public Library from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5, and Saturday, Jan. 6.

More: What we know about Perry's high school principal, who was reportedly shot Thursday morning

How is Perry Community School District connected to recent school lawsuits in Iowa?

A Perry Community School District librarian and two educators were named plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed by the Iowa State Education Association, Penguin Random House and four authors — Laurie Halse Anderson; John Green; Malinda Lo; and Jodi Picoult — in federal court in the Southern District of Iowa. The lawsuit challenges parts of a new, sweeping education law.

The law, Senate File 496, bars most books that depict sex acts in schools. Additionally, the law forbids curriculum or teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity through sixth grade and requires school district officials to inform parents and/or caregivers if a student asks to use different pronouns or name at school.

The school district is not a named plaintiff in the lawsuit.

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The Perry Chief's Allison Ullmann and The Des Moines Register's Samantha Hernandez contributed to this report.

Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her atvreynarodriguez@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter@VictoriaReynaR.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa shooting: Where is Perry, Iowa and what we know about Perry High