Advise with Areas please

[davebarnes]

1. Public near Broomfield
Ralston Valley Senior High School - Arvada, Colorado - CO - School overview

2. Charter schools in Colorado are public, not private.
The best is D'evelyn Junior/Senior High School - Denver, Colorado - CO - School overview
I am surprised by its crappy 9 rating when its ACT scores are awesome.

3. The 3 best private schools that I know of in greater Denver are:
Dawson
Kent
Colorado Academy
both Kent and CA are GU for you.

4. Colorado is not Florida.

[Wheatridger]

I'd bias my choice towards commute times, which are consistent and objective factors, rather than subjective school ratings. Denver has excellent schools scattered all along the Front Range.

Nobody's mentioned Lakewood High School yet, where my daughter graduated last year. During our four years with the school, these good things happened:
- 2015: the International Baccalaureate program (oldest in the district) graduated 100% of its students
- 2013: A student-produced video that involved 90% of the 2,500 students won a national competition, and we became the site of a televised concert album debut (Good Morning America) by Katy Perry.
- 2012: the football team made it to state championships
- 2012- my kid played violin in an all-sung production of "Les Mis," with over two hours of music (other similarly ambitious student productions have included "Laramie Project" and "Amadeus")
- the music program, involving over 500 kids, sent ensembles for back-to-back years to command performances at a statewide music teachers event.

LHS graduates wound up at colleges of their choice, up to and including the Ivy League. My kid was accepted at six medium-selective private colleges. But the point is, this high school wasn't unique; it's ranked among the two three dozen in Colorado, and it's strong in multiple different areas, that's all.

If I were the OP, I'd look at West Arvada (Ralston Valley HS, with a strong music program), or Legacy HS in Broomfield (one of our big marching band rivals), or somewhere in east Boulder County. I can't find any compelling reason to think that higher-ranked schools south or east of Denver are that much better. Use the time you save to be home and pay attention to your kids, attending all their school events that's a sure payoff for both of you!

Finally, I'd ask the OP why it's so important to attend a top 10/10s school? That certainly won't guarantee Ivy League acceptances. Those schools can't fit every applicant from the "best" high schools, in rank order. They need to maintain productive relationships with every high school, to keep their own numbers up, so they may favor a kid from a poor school who surpassed his situation. From my fairly extensive study of the college admissions game, your best bet would be to move to a small state like Wyoming, where your kid's academic success will stand out from the pack. Those colleges really like to claim "all 50 states" in their freshman classes!

I'd also examine how the best high schools get that way. Statistically, the fastest way to boost a high score is to trim off the low performers. Districts like Cherry Creek do that with their boundaries, which exclude racial and economic diversity. But their best students are no more gifted or well-educated than a school like Lakewood, which hosts a considerable low-income population that lowers its average stats.

[Weatherstoner]

Originally Posted by Bradburn1

Lots of middle school kids, we fill our own bus to Westlake, which is an excellent school. Very limited inventory right now but I know several people are waiting until spring to list. Also agree with other posters, the commute here from Stapleton or Wash Park to Westminster would suuuuuuck.

Ahem, not all the kids on the bus are from Bradburn. The bus also picks up kids in Weatherstone. They should look at adding a bus as my middle schooler says they are 3 to a seat....

[Katarina Witt]

Just came upon this thread again, to make a long story short. We seem to have lost the OP. However, assuming she's still looking, I have a few comments.

Originally Posted by It2244

I'm not 100 percent if I'm relocating with kids this summer 2016. My kids wanted to finish elementary school and middle school with their friends. This would be 2017/18 school. My daughter would then be in 6th grade and son 9th. I'm coming down this month to visit and explore. Do exceptional grades and gifted label make a difference in getting in? Is layfette comparable to Louisville to live?

It is my opinion that the family should stay together. Kids usually don't like change, can always think of a reason not to move. However, that is your decision.

I've lived in Louisville for 33 years. Louisville and Lafayette are similar but not identical. Both are basically middle class, but Lafayette has more lower-economic status people living in it than Louisville; Lville OTOH, has more higher end people. The high school for Lafayette is Centaurus. It is diverse in the true sense of the word; it has students from the entire spectrum. Before Monarch HS was built in Louisville, Louisville kids went there too, and my friends whose kids went there were happy with it. Monarch High opened when my oldest was a freshman. My kids got a great education there and felt well-prepared for college. It got a little "preppy". I should caution, I haven't had a kid there since 2005.

Originally Posted by Wheatridger

I'd bias my choice towards commute times, which are consistent and objective factors, rather than subjective school ratings. Denver has excellent schools scattered all along the Front Range.

Nobody's mentioned Lakewood High School yet, where my daughter graduated last year. During our four years with the school, these good things happened:
- 2015: the International Baccalaureate program (oldest in the district) graduated 100% of its students
- 2013: A student-produced video that involved 90% of the 2,500 students won a national competition, and we became the site of a televised concert album debut (Good Morning America) by Katy Perry.
- 2012: the football team made it to state championships
- 2012- my kid played violin in an all-sung production of "Les Mis," with over two hours of music (other similarly ambitious student productions have included "Laramie Project" and "Amadeus")
- the music program, involving over 500 kids, sent ensembles for back-to-back years to command performances at a statewide music teachers event.

LHS graduates wound up at colleges of their choice, up to and including the Ivy League. My kid was accepted at six medium-selective private colleges. But the point is, this high school wasn't unique; it's ranked among the two three dozen in Colorado, and it's strong in multiple different areas, that's all.

If I were the OP, I'd look at West Arvada (Ralston Valley HS, with a strong music program), or Legacy HS in Broomfield (one of our big marching band rivals), or somewhere in east Boulder County. I can't find any compelling reason to think that higher-ranked schools south or east of Denver are that much better. Use the time you save to be home and pay attention to your kids, attending all their school events that's a sure payoff for both of you!

Finally, I'd ask the OP why it's so important to attend a top 10/10s school? That certainly won't guarantee Ivy League acceptances. Those schools can't fit every applicant from the "best" high schools, in rank order. They need to maintain productive relationships with every high school, to keep their own numbers up, so they may favor a kid from a poor school who surpassed his situation. From my fairly extensive study of the college admissions game, your best bet would be to move to a small state like Wyoming, where your kid's academic success will stand out from the pack. Those colleges really like to claim "all 50 states" in their freshman classes!

I'd also examine how the best high schools get that way. Statistically, the fastest way to boost a high score is to trim off the low performers. Districts like Cherry Creek do that with their boundaries, which exclude racial and economic diversity. But their best students are no more gifted or well-educated than a school like Lakewood, which hosts a considerable low-income population that lowers its average stats.

I would not recommend Lakewood, or even Arvada, unless the OPs found a dynamite house there. Reason? The commute can get kind of ugly. There are certainly plenty of good schools closer to the Broomfield/Westminster border. It would help if the OP could give coordiates, e.g. cross streets. The Broomfield-Westy border goes a ways east-west.