Public schools in Denver, CO
Denver has 226 public schools with a 2024-25 address in the city: 59 high, 32 middle, 128 elementary, 7 other, enrolling 100,742 students. They are run by 10 districts and agencies; Denver Public Schools runs 197 of them.
NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: schools open that year with enrollment · method
The 10 districts and agencies that run Denver's public schools
Each district decides who can enroll where; its page holds its schools, spending and teachers.
| District | Schools in Denver | District students, fall 2022 | Spending per student, FY23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Public Schools | 197 | 87,883 | $17,206 |
| Mapleton Public Schools | 10 | 7,088 | $14,482 |
| Westminster Public Schools | 7 | 8,004 | $17,815 |
| Cherry Creek School District #5 | 3 | 52,392 | $15,158 |
| Jeffco Public Schools | 2 | 75,327 | $14,483 |
| Adams 12 Five Star Schools | 2 | 35,747 | $14,748 |
| State Charter School Institute | 2 | 19,239 | $12,197 |
| Denver 1 | 1 | 390 | not reported |
| Aurora Public Schools | 1 | 38,135 | $18,111 |
| Sheridan School District No. 2 | 1 | 1,125 | $25,345 |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: school location city and operating agency; NCES F-33 fiscal year 2022-23: district fall membership and current spending per student. Schools on a city's edge can serve students from outside it.
59 high schools in Denver, 30,403 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East High School | 2,476 | 21.2 | 29.0% | Denver Public Schools |
| Northfield High School | 2,137 | 18.4 | 27.9% | Denver Public Schools |
| South High School | 1,950 | 19.4 | 34.6% | Denver Public Schools |
| North High School | 1,653 | 17.4 | 54.3% | Denver Public Schools |
| Thomas Jefferson High School | 1,390 | 19.6 | 46.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| George Washington High School | 1,326 | 20.5 | 50.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| D'Evelyn Junior/Senior High School | 1,212 | 20.9 | 10.8% | Jeffco Public Schools |
| Montbello High School | 1,112 | 15.5 | 72.9% | Denver Public Schools |
| Denver School of the Arts | 1,044 | 20.2 | 14.2% | Denver Public Schools |
| Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Early College | 1,027 | 15.9 | 71.6% | Denver Public Schools |
The other 49 high schools
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
32 middle schools in Denver, 14,103 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McAuliffe International School | 1,329 | 19.8 | 24.9% | Denver Public Schools |
| Hamilton Middle School | 775 | 15.9 | 62.7% | Denver Public Schools |
| Skinner Middle School | 673 | 16.6 | 36.0% | Denver Public Schools |
| Hill Campus of Arts and Sciences | 651 | 18.8 | 48.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| Merrill Middle School | 611 | 17.1 | 34.9% | Denver Public Schools |
| Lake Middle School | 592 | 14.6 | 70.6% | Denver Public Schools |
| Denver Green School Northfield | 558 | 18.1 | 21.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| DSST: Byers Middle School | 485 | 13.6 | 43.7% | Denver Public Schools |
| DSST: Green Valley Ranch Middle School | 482 | 15.1 | 66.2% | Denver Public Schools |
| Morey Middle School | 479 | 19.2 | 26.3% | Denver Public Schools |
The other 22 middle schools
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
128 elementary schools in Denver, 54,510 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Language School | 930 | 16.1 | 17.8% | Denver Public Schools |
| Florida Pitt-Waller ECE-8 School | 886 | 17.9 | 72.7% | Denver Public Schools |
| William (Bill) Roberts ECE-8 School | 872 | 18.7 | 10.8% | Denver Public Schools |
| McGlone Academy | 842 | 14.9 | 79.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| Place Bridge Academy | 824 | 13.0 | 79.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| Omar D Blair Charter School | 783 | 14.2 | 71.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| Slavens K-8 School | 762 | 18.7 | 12.1% | Denver Public Schools |
| Park Hill School | 717 | 19.2 | 12.7% | Denver Public Schools |
| Green Valley Elementary School | 714 | 14.8 | 69.2% | Denver Public Schools |
| McMeen Elementary School | 706 | 18.4 | 58.5% | Denver Public Schools |
The other 118 elementary schools
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
7 other schools in Denver, 1,726 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kunsmiller Creative Arts Academy | 670 | 15.4 | 72.5% | Denver Public Schools |
| Rocky Mountain School of Expeditionary Learning | 382 | 16.2 | 1.3% | Denver 1 |
| Pascual Ledoux Academy | 236 | 13.9 | 75.0% | Denver Public Schools |
| Mapleton Online | 152 | 12.2 | not reported | Mapleton Public Schools |
| Sandra Todd-Williams Academy | 143 | 13.5 | 58.0% | Denver Public Schools |
| The Cottage at Holly Ridge | 74 | 24.7 | not reported | Cherry Creek |
| Early Learning Center at Francis M. Day | 69 | not reported | 7.2% | Westminster Public Schools |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
How Denver's public schools compare with Colorado's
The median Denver school has 15.0 students per full-time teacher, about the same as the Colorado median of 15.4. 71% of its schools ran a schoolwide Title I program in 2021-22, against 33% across the state. Its median school enrolls 381 students (state 368).
| Denver | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Median students per teacher | 15.0 | 15.4 |
| Median school size (students) | 381 | 368 |
| Schools with a schoolwide Title I program (2021-22) | 71% | 33% |
| Schools where every student eats free (CEP) | 85% | 72% |
| Charter schools | 25% | 13% |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch program, charter status; the 226 Denver schools and the 1,861 Colorado schools open that year with students); Title I status CCD 2021-22. Students per teacher counts 2024-25 teachers and ratios from 3 to 99.
What to look at next in Denver
- Denver Public SchoolsRuns 197 of Denver's 226 public schools and spent $17,206 per student in fiscal year 2022-23.$17,206
- East High School, the largest high school in Denver2,476 students in 2024-25, 21.2 per teacher.2,476
- Compare Denver Public Schools with Mapleton Public SchoolsDenver's two largest operators side by side: enrollment, spending and schools.
- The largest public schools in ColoradoColorado's 50 largest schools open in 2024-25, by enrollment.
- Find the school district for a Denver addressA home's district, not its city, decides which public schools it can enroll in.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (schools and their operating agencies); NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23 (spending per student).
Choosing among them: how to choose a school district with the federal data, and what a Title I school is.
Other cities in Colorado
- Colorado Springs179 schools
- Aurora100 schools
- Fort Collins47 schools
- Lakewood47 schools
- Pueblo45 schools
- Littleton42 schools
- Thornton39 schools
- Grand Junction33 schools
Questions about schools in Denver
How many public schools are in Denver, CO?
226 public schools with an address in Denver were open in 2024-25: 59 high, 32 middle, 128 elementary, 7 other, enrolling 100,742 students. 56 are charter schools.What is the largest high school in Denver?
East High School, with 2,476 students in 2024-25 (Denver Public Schools).Which districts run Denver's schools?
Denver Public Schools (197 schools), Mapleton Public Schools (10 schools), Westminster Public Schools (7 schools), Cherry Creek School District #5 (3 schools), and 6 more. A school's district, not its city, decides who can enroll.
These figures are for information and are not a substitute for the district's enrollment office, which confirms the school a home is assigned to.
Sources
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25
Source: NCES Common Core of Data Public school search (the official record of each school) · 2024-25