Colorado Springs District 11 Schools (Fountain: home, neighborhoods, purchasing)

[GeneralTurgidson]

I am considering relocating to Colorado Springs. A home that I am considering is in District 11, namely Sabin Middle School, and Mitchell HS.

Does anyone have any experience with these schools for my two boys?

They are doing well academically and are considered at least "proficient", if not higher, in our current school district. Thanks.

[Sonic_Spork]

Mike!

Mike-mike-mike!

Guess what day it is?

(The day you need to move this thread to the Colorado Springs forum!)

General Turgidson, welcome! I know that D11 has a mix, some schools are good and some not so much. It has been my opinion that D11 might be somewhat more innovative with their approach than other schools, and I was interested in that when I shopped schools myself.

Once this thread gets shifted to the Springs subforum, someone will probably be able to give you better specific info on those particular schools.

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by Sonic_Spork

Mike!

Mike-mike-mike! Guess what day it is?

(The day you need to move this thread to the Colorado Springs forum!)

Moved

[otowi]

D11 as a whole is pretty good but Mitchell is the worst-performing of the 4 regular high schools in the district. Sabin is ok but not the best available in the district by a long shot. If you lived in the northern boundaries of Sabin you'd feed into Doherty which is better than Mitchell by most measures. Or if you get yourself West of Academy you could feed into Palmer which is also better.

In D11, Palmer, Doherty and Coronado are all decent high schools about on par with one another - each has a few things that make them unique. Mitchell has significantly lower test scores and higher staff turnover. That doesn't mean a good education isn't possible there or that no good kids go there - because it is and they do, but it is hard to recommend when looking at the data.

For middle schools, Jenkins and Holmes are considered the best in D11 by most measures, and Swigert and Galileo the worst.

In reality, a lot of this has to do with SES - the neighborhoods feeding into Swigert and Galileo are the most transient and poor in the district, over all. The southern part of Sabin's area suffers similarly. And by extension, Mitchell is the high school in D11 with the most transient and lowest-income populace over all.

That being said, most will recommend that you choose any school in D11 over Harrison D2 district to the south, for similar reasons. If you're having trouble finding places in your budget, also look at Widefield D3 and Fountain D8 as options or find something on the west side of town that feeds into Holmes and Coronado but is near the boundary with West for affordability.

Boundary maps for D11 can be found here: http://www.d11.org/Schools/boundarie...s/default.aspx

[GeneralTurgidson]

Thanks. That's very helpful. I am a very involved parent, and my kids are pretty "straight". I think that has a lot to do with it, more so than what school they're in.

I am purchasing a relative's home, so it is not really a question of budget.

[Sonic_Spork]

Bear in mind also that we have school choice here. So if you prefer a school other than the one your students would naturally just feed into based on boundaries, you can submit forms to try and choice into a different school or even a different district. The main things to be aware of there, are that a.) the most desirable schools and districts would get full faster thereby limiting how many students they can accept and if there is a wait list or whatever...and b.) you do have to provide transportation if you choose a school besides the one you're assigned with your address.

I'd say the main issue is your ability/willingness to provide transportation. After that, you call any schools you're wanting to consider and see what the availability for choice is there.

I very strongly agree that parental involvement goes a long, long way in bringing up good kids that do well...much more than the test score data for a school or the income demographics of its students. Although if a kid is miserable for some reason it can make it hard for them to learn. Just be aware that you have options.

[otowi]

In D11 if you're interested in choice, I know for high school your best bet is Coronado. Doherty and Palmer sit at 95% capacity with the boundaries they redrew a few years ago and so have less room for choicers - although they always do take some. Coronado has a little more room for growth. I'm not sure about the middle schools. You could also choice into other districts - like D3 or D8 to the south, D49 to the east of where you're looking.

[hollyt00]

Sabin is a gifted magnet, using the "SAIL" program. I agree trying to go to Coronado, for space concerns. My child will be going to Palmer. She attends North right now, and I am overall pleased with North. Their orchestra program is awesome. The teachers there are responsive. The only concern- a big one- is that North has had several years of "low test scores" - which we all seem in this thread to share a collective eye-roll - and they have a few years to turn things around or the state may take over North. That's the rumor, at least, shared to my daughter from one of the teachers there.