| | Altoona, IA | Columbus, NE | United States |
| Expend. per Student | $14,293 | $12,946 | $15,905 |
| Educ. Expend. per Student | $11,894 | $11,317 | $13,142 |
| Instr. Expend. per Student | $7,373 | $6,840 | $7,999 |
| Pupil/Teacher Ratio | 15.53 | 15.26 | 16.23 |
| Students per Librarian | 799 | 294 | 4573 |
| Students per Counselor | 362 | 317 | 530 |
| Grade School Educ. | 1.4% | 4.9% | 4.8% |
| Some High School Educ. | 2.8% | 6.8% | 6.3% |
| High School Educ. | 95.9% | 88.3% | 88.9% |
| Some College Educ. | 20.5% | 22.8% | 20.0% |
| 2 yr College Grad. | 12.4% | 12.9% | 8.7% |
| 4 yr College Grad. | 29.7% | 22.0% | 33.7% |
| Masters Grad. | 5.8% | 5.5% | 9.3% |
| Professional Degree | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2.2% |
| Doctorate Degree | 0.7% | 0.1% | 1.5% |