Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Vanguard Classical School - West

Public, Charter Grades K-8

828^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 950 Colorado Elementary Schools

Better than 13% of Colorado elementary schools

Summary

Vanguard Classical School - West is a public charter elementary and middle school in Denver, Colorado, serving 365 students from kindergarten through 8th grade. The school is part of the Aurora Joint District No. 28, which is ranked 103 out of 115 school districts in Colorado and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Vanguard Classical School - West consistently ranks in the bottom 20% of Colorado elementary schools, with its performance on CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success) tests significantly below state and district averages across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2024-2025, only 9.8% of Vanguard students were proficient or better in CMAS Math, compared to 35.9% statewide and 18.4% in the Aurora district. The school also has higher dropout rates and chronic absenteeism rates compared to state and district averages. Vanguard Classical School - West serves a high percentage of students from low-income families, with 66.57% to 87.95% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch in recent years.

The challenges faced by Vanguard Classical School - West are not unique to the school, as nearby schools in the Aurora district, such as Boston K-8 School and Fulton Academy of Excellence, also perform poorly on academic measures and have high rates of poverty and chronic absenteeism. In contrast, schools in the neighboring Denver Public Schools district, such as Montclair School of Academics and Enrichment, Lowry Elementary School, and Denver Language School, generally outperform Vanguard Classical School - West and the Aurora district on academic measures, despite serving similar socioeconomic populations.

380

Students ?

13.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$22,744

Per pupil spending ?

83.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

801 Yosemite Street
Denver, CO 80230-6087

(303) 691-2384

District: Aurora Joint District No. 28

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

64.7%

African American:

22.4%

Two or more races:

6.1%

See top rated Colorado elementary schools

Compare Vanguard Classical School - West to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 4th percentile in 2022 → 13th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 13th (2025) from a 4th-percentile low (2022)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Colorado average (14% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (13th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (36% vs 28% Colorado)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school14%

District avg21%

Colorado avg40%

Elementary school

828^th of 950

Colorado public elementary schools ?

Bottom 13%▼ down 6 pts since 2015

From bottom 19% (2015) to bottom 13% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

373^rd of 469

Colorado public middle schools ?

Bottom 20%▲ up 9 pts since 2015

From bottom 12% (2015) to bottom 20% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

19^th of 36Elementary Schools in the Aurora Joint District No. 28

103^rd of 115Aurora Joint District No. 28 among Colorado districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	13.5	828 of 950	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	11.1	865 of 943	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.1	873 of 933	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.8	882 of 921	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.4	801 of 965	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.4	857 of 917	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	19.8	739 of 929	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	16.7	771 of 914	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	19.2	761 of 938	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	29.5	706 of 962	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	30.4	698 of 954	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	19.8	769 of 935	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	11.0	840 of 935	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	8.6	853 of 925	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2023	7.2	629 of 642	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.5	700 of 758	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.6	666 of 690	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	28.7	204 of 270	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.3	151 of 172	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	13.1	318 of 332	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	17.2	643 of 764	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.3	630 of 693	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	19.6	373 of 469	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.0	354 of 485	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.1	400 of 480	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	11.2	411 of 448	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	21.2	324 of 418	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	25.1	315 of 424	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	25.4	301 of 400	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	16.3	385 of 436	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	36.9	296 of 461	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2013	36.0	317 of 454	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	20.3	352 of 425	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	19.1	354 of 422	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	18.5	352 of 409	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	27.0	242 of 347	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	19.4	277 of 350	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.6	226 of 315	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	29.7	157 of 218	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	41.5	104 of 199	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	37.5	131 of 220	40.5%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	23.1	264 of 352	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.8	269 of 357	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.5	262 of 317	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Elementary school

Hispanic (2019)24th percentile+7 vs school

Male (2019)16th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2019)4th percentile-13 vs school

Female (2023)2nd percentile-4 vs school

Middle school

Female (2025)30th percentile+10 vs school

Hispanic (2025)28th percentile+8 vs school

Male (2025)25th percentile+5 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts20%-25 vs state

Math10%-26 vs state

Science9%-28 vs state

3.3

6 ratings · 4 written reviews

5★2

4★2

3★0

2★0

1★2

Rate Vanguard Classical School - West

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Rude staff. Always making kids like they are failures, and bad. I'm taking my kids out of this school. Close Quote

by a student
Tuesday, March 21, 2017

nice people Close Quote

by a parent
Friday, May 15, 2015

My child was in the Aurora school system, put her in the 2nd grade at Vanguard Classical school in Aurora. Her excitment to learn and wanting to go to school hit an all time high. We are very pleased with the teachers and the enviroment. Highly recommend this school. Her ability to read, write and math skills have tripled in the present of this school. Great job Vanguard Classical school Close Quote

by a parent
Monday, March 31, 2014

Great education model, and the teacher/student ratio is low and therefore students get a lot attention. I really like the Classical Model, Singapore Math and Riggs Reading program. My kids came from a DPS school and we've been happy every year. if you live near the school I would recommend checking the school out and consider attending even if you have to choice in. With the new K-12 school opening, there will be several openings in the K-8 Lowry Campus school. Close Quote

Schools Near Vanguard Classical School - West

Load more schools when map is moved

Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CMAS English Language Arts (2025)							CMAS Math (2025)							CMAS Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CMAS English Language Arts 3rd Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 5th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 6th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 7th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 8th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts All Grades	CMAS Math 3rd Grade	CMAS Math 4th Grade	CMAS Math 5th Grade	CMAS Math 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	CMAS Science 8th Grade	Total
Vanguard Classical School - West	Public, Charter	K-8	801 Yosemite Street	Denver	80230	Denver County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	Yes	No	No	No	(303) 691-2384	380	29	13.1	83.4%	19 (5.0%)	85 (22.4%)	246 (64.7%)	2 (0.5%)	4 (1.1%)	1 (0.3%)	23 (6.1%)	13.5	828^th of 950 public elementary schools	12.8%		11.1	865^th of 943 public elementary schools	8.3%	37	11.1			26.2	41.2	20.0	19.8	6.7			22.0	9.8	14.3	9.8		8.6	$22,744
Boston K-8 School	Public	PK, KG-8	1365 Boston St.	Aurora	80010	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 364-6878	413	26	15.8	95.6%	17 (4.1%)	46 (11.1%)	310 (75.1%)	25 (6.1%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.1%)	6.4	935^th of 950 public elementary schools	1.6%		5.8	936^th of 943 public elementary schools	0.7%	1	10.2	10.8		8.5	7.5		8.8		8.1		8.5		14.7	5.7			$21,523
Fulton Academy of Excellence	Public	PK, KG-5	755 Fulton St	Aurora	80010	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 364-8078	410	28	14.6	93.4%	25 (6.1%)	36 (8.8%)	323 (78.8%)	8 (2.0%)	4 (1.0%)	3 (0.7%)	11 (2.7%)	6.4	933^rd of 950 public elementary schools	1.8%		5.9	933^rd of 943 public elementary schools	1.1%		14.1	4.8	21.3				12.6	5.9	6.1	12.5				7.7	10.4		$20,953
Montclair School of Academics and Enrichment	Public	PK, KG-5	1151 Newport Street	Denver	80220	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-5380	353	25	14.1	79.9%	58 (16.4%)	123 (34.8%)	126 (35.7%)	13 (3.7%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	31 (8.8%)	16.5	787^th of 950 public elementary schools	17.2%		21.2	729^th of 943 public elementary schools	22.7%	58	9.5	27.7	30.8				23.4	13.6	23.1	15.1				17.4	22.2		$21,252
Lowry Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	8001 East Cedar Avenue	Denver	80230	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-5910	400	29	13.9	74.8%	81 (20.3%)	153 (38.3%)	125 (31.3%)	6 (1.5%)	4 (1.0%)	2 (0.5%)	29 (7.3%)	24.2	675^th of 950 public elementary schools	28.9%		22.6	702^nd of 943 public elementary schools	25.6%	27	23.5	25.4	39.1				28.8	34.6	20.3	27.7				27.2	19.6		$19,261
Denver Language School	Public, Charter	K-8	451 Newport Street	Denver	80220	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	No	(303) 557-0852	930	58	16.1	20.6%	381 (41.0%)	41 (4.4%)	286 (30.8%)	61 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	158 (17.0%)	82.2	149^th of 950 public elementary schools	84.3%		75.5	205^th of 943 public elementary schools	78.3%	56	43.0	51.0	74.3	76.8	74.0	78.9	64.8	56.6	63.0	71.4	64.6	60.3	81.1	65.6	64.4	76.0	$13,312
Ashley Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1914 Syracuse Street	Denver	80220	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-9748	387	23	16.4	86.0%	14 (3.6%)	49 (12.7%)	306 (79.1%)	7 (1.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.6%)	6.1	938^th of 950 public elementary schools	1.3%		15.8	795^th of 943 public elementary schools	15.7%	143			15.6				10.3	11.1						6.3	6.7		$18,836
Aurora Academy Charter School	Public, Charter	K-8	10251 East 1st Ave	Aurora	80010	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	Yes	No	No	No	(303) 367-5983	536	40	13.4	73.9%	49 (9.1%)	272 (50.7%)	173 (32.3%)	10 (1.9%)	4 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (5.2%)	42.7	509^th of 950 public elementary schools	46.4%		50.7	443^rd of 943 public elementary schools	53.0%	66	41.0	18.9	48.0	38.2	62.7	52.9	42.5	39.7		36.0	35.3	31.4		30.5	38.0	35.3	$14,334
William (Bill) Roberts Ece-8 School	Public	K-8	2100 Akron Way	Denver	80238	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-2640	872	47	18.7	13.1%	563 (64.6%)	63 (7.2%)	126 (14.4%)	30 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	88 (10.1%)	95.4	24^th of 950 public elementary schools	97.5%		97.2	14^th of 943 public elementary schools	98.5%	10	64.1	74.0	82.3	81.3	90.9	77.1	78.2	77.7	79.6	85.3	74.5	90.5	85.3	81.9	72.6	59.6	$16,018
Crawford Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1600 Florence St	Aurora	80010	Adams County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 340-3290	567	36	15.5	97.7%	17 (3.0%)	80 (14.1%)	401 (70.7%)	49 (8.6%)	6 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.5%)								(n/a)		5.6					4.7							2.4			$19,728

Frequently Asked Questions about Vanguard Classical School - West

Is Vanguard Classical School - West a good school?

Vanguard Classical School - West ranks in the bottom 12.8% of Colorado elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Vanguard Classical School - West?

Students at Vanguard Classical School - West are 65% Hispanic, 22% African American, 6% Two or more races, 5% White, 1% American Indian.

How many students attend Vanguard Classical School - West?

In the 2024-25 school year, 380 students attended Vanguard Classical School - West.

What district is Vanguard Classical School - West in?

Aurora Joint District No. 28

Rate Vanguard Classical School - West!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

COColorado Elementary School Rankings

COColorado District Rankings

Schools in Denver, CO

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Vanguard Classical School - West!

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Colorado Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.