High school (grades 9-12) · Denver, CO

Dsst: Cole High School

Federal NCES profile for Dsst: Cole High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.

2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 080336006636Charter school
0/100100/10042/100
👥 S:T ratio
59
📚 AP courses
40
🌟 Gifted program
70
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Dsst: Cole High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 91% of Colorado schools.

#29 of 45
high schools in Denver · Resource Index
42
Resource Index · Typical
10.3:1
small classes for Colorado
76.0%
free-lunch eligible

Dsst: Cole High School has class sizes smaller than 91% of Colorado schools. Computed live against every Colorado school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Dsst: Cole High School ranks #29 of 45 high schools in Denver, CO.

Enrollment

287

Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

28.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

10.3:1

vs 16.6:1 Colorado avg

-38% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

76.0%

vs 38.5% Colorado avg

+97% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Dsst: Cole High School compares with Colorado and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Dsst: Cole High School

Dsst: Cole High School is a high-poverty, mid-sized charter high school in Denver, Colorado, enrolling 287 students.

Classes run notably small here: at 10.3:1, Dsst: Cole High School is leaner than roughly 91% of Colorado schools and 38% under the state's 16.6:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.

Economic need is high: 76.0% of students qualify for free meals, 97% above the Colorado average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 287 students, its enrollment sits close to the Colorado median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,922 scored Colorado schools.

Against 161 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #69.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (80%) and African American (14%) (diversity index 34/100).

On the academic-pipeline side it reports 8 Advanced Placement courses.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 77.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Discipline events run high: 60 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 287 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.

School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C also operates East High School (2,476 students) and Northfield High School (2,137 students) alongside Dsst: Cole High School.

Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25

How Dsst: Cole High School compares

Dsst: Cole High School on the metrics families compare, against Colorado and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Colorado Colorado avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 10.3:1 ▼ 38% 16.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 76.0% ▲ 97% 38.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 287 top 64% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

10.3:1
Leaner classes than 87% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
287
Bigger than 30% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
76.0%
free-lunch eligible - 97% above the Colorado average of 38.5%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.3:1
students per teacher - 38% below state mean
Top 9% in Colorado - lower ratio than 91% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
77.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,336
per pupil, district-wide - below Colorado avg of $16,273
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
36
in-school suspensions + 24 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 12.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 20.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

Overview

  • Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
  • Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
  • F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.

Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.

Student demographics

Hispanic or Latino 79.6%
African American 14.4%
White 3.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Two or More 0.7%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 79.6% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 34.4/100

Simpson diversity index - at 34.4, Dsst: Cole High School is less mixed than the Colorado school average of 47.1.

Programs

AP courses offered 8
Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C, which includes Dsst: Cole High School.

$15,336
Per student
-6%
vs Colorado
Avg $16,273
-8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 70.4%
State 16.8%
Federal 12.8%

Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.

How Dsst: Cole High School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
East High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Northfield High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
South High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
North High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Thomas Jefferson High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Dsst: Cole High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

School District No. 1 In The County Of Denver And State Of C · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar high schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Colorado, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Dsst: Cole High School's federal record.

Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.

Frequently asked questions about Dsst: Cole High School

How many students attend Dsst: Cole High School?

Dsst: Cole High School has 287 students enrolled. It is a high school in Denver, CO.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Dsst: Cole High School?

The student-teacher ratio at Dsst: Cole High School is 10.3:1, which is 38% lower than the Colorado average of 16.6:1 and 34% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Dsst: Cole High School?

76.0% of students at Dsst: Cole High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dsst: Cole High School?

The largest demographic group at Dsst: Cole High School is Hispanic or Latino at 79.6% of enrollment, in Denver, CO.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Dsst: Cole High School?

Dsst: Cole High School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Dsst: Cole High School rank among high schools in Denver?

By Resource Investment Index, Dsst: Cole High School ranks #29 of 45 high schools in Denver, CO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in Denver on the city page.

Is Dsst: Cole High School a good school?

Dsst: Cole High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 91% of Colorado schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.

What other schools are in School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C?

Besides Dsst: Cole High School, School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C also operates East High School (2,476 students), Northfield High School (2,137 students), and South High School (1,950 students). See the School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.