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Prairie Middle School

Q: Is Prairie Middle School a good school?

Prairie Middle School ranks in the bottom 7.7% of Colorado middle schools.

Q: How many students attend Prairie Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,491 students attended Prairie Middle School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Prairie Middle School?

Students at Prairie Middle School are 47% Hispanic, 20% African American, 17% White, 9% Two or more races, 6% Asian.

Q: What high school do graduates of Prairie Middle School attend?

Students who attend Prairie Middle School usually go on to attend Overland High School

Public Grades 6-8

433^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 469 Colorado Middle Schools

Better than 8% of Colorado middle schools

Summary

Prairie Middle School is a public middle school located in Aurora, Colorado, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 1,362 students. It is part of the Cherry Creek School District No. 5, which is ranked 30th out of 115 school districts in Colorado and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite being part of a highly-ranked school district, Prairie Middle School consistently ranks in the bottom half of Colorado middle schools, with a ranking between 400-460 out of 448-485 schools in recent years. The school's performance on CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success) tests is significantly lower than the district and state averages across all grades and subjects. For example, in 2024-2025, only 10.8% of Prairie Middle School students were proficient or better in CMAS Math, compared to 42.8% in the Cherry Creek School District and 35.9% statewide. Prairie Middle School also has relatively high dropout rates, ranging from 1.2% to 2.1% in recent years, and high chronic absenteeism rates, reaching as high as 42.1% in 2023-2024.

When compared to nearby schools in the same district, such as Horizon Middle School and Campus Middle School, Prairie Middle School's academic performance is significantly lower. These schools consistently rank in the top half of Colorado middle schools and have much higher proficiency rates on CMAS tests. In contrast, Prairie Middle School's performance is more comparable to the lower-performing middle schools in the Aurora Joint District No. 28, such as North Middle School, East Middle School, and Mrachek Middle School, which also struggle with low academic achievement and high rates of poverty and chronic absenteeism.

1,491

Students ?

15.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,587

Per pupil spending ?

68.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

12600 East Jewell Avenue
Aurora, CO 80012-5325

(720) 747-3000

District: Cherry Creek School District No. 5

Students who attend Prairie Middle School usually attend:

High:

Overland High School

Feeder schools for Prairie Middle School:

Elementary:	Eastridge Community Elementary School
	Highline Community Elementary School
	Polton Community Elementary School
	Ponderosa Elementary School
	More...
	Village East Community Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

47.3%

African American:

20.5%

White:

16.8%

See top rated Colorado middle schools

Compare Prairie Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 37th percentile in 2015 → 8th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Colorado average (15% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (8th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (50% vs 28% Colorado)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school15%

District avg45%

Colorado avg40%

433^rd of 469

Colorado public middle schools ?

Bottom 8%▼ down 29 pts since 2015

From bottom 37% (2015) to bottom 8% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

11^th of 11Middle Schools in the Cherry Creek School District No. 5

30^th of 115Cherry Creek School District No. 5 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	11.5	433 of 469	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.9	439 of 485	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.8	446 of 480	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.4	400 of 448	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.1	353 of 369	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.6	374 of 458	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	16.5	351 of 418	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	21.4	329 of 424	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	30.4	273 of 400	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2015	34.8	275 of 436	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2014	27.0	350 of 461	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	28.7	343 of 454	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	30.0	314 of 425	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	31.2	308 of 422	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	28.1	317 of 409	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	24.6	303 of 377	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	24.0	295 of 362	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	23.2	295 of 360	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	19.4	297 of 346	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	22.6	275 of 340	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	26.1	257 of 336	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	20.1	27 of 29	6.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	23 of 25	8.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.4	24 of 25	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.1	18 of 20	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	8.5	8 of 8	0.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.3	31 of 33	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	17.9	21 of 22	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	30.7	20 of 25	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	16.7	20 of 20	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	8.6	331 of 347	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.1	333 of 350	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.2	347 of 363	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	8.6	308 of 326	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.1	240 of 254	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.4	295 of 352	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.6	272 of 315	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2024	39.2	95 of 126	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	41.2	94 of 134	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	32.9	102 of 121	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	10.1	213 of 218	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.0	196 of 199	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.8	195 of 198	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.7	155 of 169	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.1	82 of 83	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	20.9	185 of 220	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.5	139 of 165	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	13.8	228 of 241	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.9	233 of 244	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.7	237 of 241	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.1	185 of 197	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.1	112 of 114	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	25.8	191 of 240	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.6	187 of 222	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	9.5	335 of 352	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.7	334 of 357	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.0	338 of 356	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.8	301 of 328	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.2	246 of 249	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.2	292 of 343	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	13.2	289 of 317	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	7.9	23 of 23	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	14.8	24 of 25	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.8	29 of 31	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.7	14 of 14	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	5.9	264 of 275	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.5	265 of 273	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.3	283 of 286	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.1	260 of 265	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.3	259 of 283	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.9	180 of 199	9.5%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Gifted and Talented (2024)25th percentile+15 vs school

Asian (2019)20th percentile~ school

African American (2025)7th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)5th percentile~ school

Male (2025)5th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2025)5th percentile-3 vs school

White (2025)4th percentile-4 vs school

Hispanic (2025)2nd percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)<1st percentile-8 vs school

English Language Learner (2019)<1st percentile-18 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts20%-25 vs state

Math11%-25 vs state

Science10%-26 vs state

2.8

4 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★1

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★2

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, October 2, 2019

My son was assaulted by a bully, then my son was suspended. I saw the surveillance video and the bully was the aggressor the entire time. My wife and I are still puzzled by this. We’re contacting the school board. The teachers, counselors and even the “dean” all refused to help. It honestly seems like discrimination. The previous Principal and vice principal were arrested the year before, so I’m wondering if they’re just trying to avoid a lawsuit. Also, the “dean” stormed out of the room threatening to get security on me, solely because I told her she was wrong. The bully completely provoked, threatened and assaulted my son. Close Quote

by a student
Thursday, December 1, 2016

This school is the worst school I have ever been too Close Quote

by a student
Friday, September 23, 2011

I have just recently transferred from my old school to this one for the eigth grade year and I so far love it! The school overall makes you feel welcomed and doesn't give children that "new kid" type feeling. Even the students are quite nice to eachother and students who have been here for the whole middle school year have been trained on what respect looks like. At the first week of school there was a bit of confusion but after teachers hand out schedules, fgive out lockers, and start settling students at were there soppose to be, you end up getting use to it. The school is also very strict about when students approuch to class and were they should be. The princapel is very engaged with the students and connected. She would walk through the hallways during transtion time and say hello to fellow students. This is a great place to send your child!! Close Quote

Schools Near Prairie Middle School

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 6th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 7th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 8th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts All Grades	CMAS Math 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 8th Grade	Total
Prairie Middle School	Public	6-8	12600 East Jewell Avenue	Aurora	80012	Arapahoe County	Cherry Creek School District No. 5	No	No	No	No	(720) 747-3000	1,491	98	15.2	68.3%	250 (16.8%)	305 (20.5%)	705 (47.3%)	86 (5.8%)	8 (0.5%)	6 (0.4%)	129 (8.7%)	11.5	433^rd of 469 public middle schools	7.7%		11.9	439^th of 485 public middle schools	9.5%	6	17.9	26.2	14.2	19.9	10.0	13.5	8.6	10.8	10.1	$17,587
Aurora Hills Middle School	Public	6-8	1009 South Uvalda St	Aurora	80012	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 341-7450	821	49	16.6	85.9%	49 (6.0%)	137 (16.7%)	536 (65.3%)	41 (5.0%)	6 (0.7%)	6 (0.7%)	46 (5.6%)	7	458^th of 469 public middle schools	2.3%		7.6	469^th of 485 public middle schools	3.3%	11	11.8	14.3	10.0	12.1	4.7	9.5	7.5	7.3	3.4	$20,227
Mrachek Middle School	Public	6-8	1955 South Telluride St	Aurora	80013	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	No	(303) 750-2836	811	40	20.2	82.7%	114 (14.1%)	141 (17.4%)	426 (52.5%)	47 (5.8%)	3 (0.4%)	13 (1.6%)	67 (8.3%)	10	443^rd of 469 public middle schools	5.5%		8.2	465^th of 485 public middle schools	4.1%	22	18.3	18.8	20.3	19.1	9.2	8.8	8.8	8.9	8.6	$18,296
Hamilton Middle School	Public	6-8	8600 East Dartmouth Avenue	Denver	80231	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 423-9500	775	49	15.9	67.4%	171 (22.1%)	113 (14.6%)	409 (52.8%)	24 (3.1%)	4 (0.5%)	6 (0.8%)	47 (6.1%)	18.1	383^rd of 469 public middle schools	18.3%		16.3	397^th of 485 public middle schools	18.1%	14	25.3	31.0	23.1	26.7	13.4	17.7	14.7	15.4	19.4	$18,033
Columbia Middle School	Public	6-8	17600 East Columbia Ave	Aurora	80013	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	No	(303) 690-6570	636	36	17.6	75.6%	144 (22.6%)	106 (16.7%)	305 (48.0%)	28 (4.4%)	3 (0.5%)	5 (0.8%)	45 (7.1%)	18.5	382^nd of 469 public middle schools	18.6%		16.2	398^th of 485 public middle schools	17.9%	16	23.2	23.0	29.4	25.0	15.9	19.0	20.0	18.2	15.3	$20,098
East Middle School	Public	6-8	1275 Fraser St	Aurora	80011	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 340-0660	634	24	26.4	92.1%	29 (4.6%)	56 (8.8%)	496 (78.2%)	23 (3.6%)	3 (0.5%)	9 (1.4%)	18 (2.8%)	6.6	460^th of 469 public middle schools	1.9%		8.6	462^nd of 485 public middle schools	4.7%	2	7.7	8.2	12.0	9.3	4.2	6.8	10.7	7.1	7.5	$17,770
Campus Middle School	Public	6-8	4785 South Dayton Street	Greenwood Village	80111	Arapahoe County	Cherry Creek School District No. 5	No	No	No	No	(720) 554-2700	1,311	75	17.3	21.6%	722 (55.1%)	53 (4.0%)	184 (14.0%)	245 (18.7%)	4 (0.3%)	5 (0.4%)	98 (7.5%)	90.3	36^th of 469 public middle schools	92.3%		93.4	25^th of 485 public middle schools	94.8%	11	63.4	73.8	69.9	68.7	58.9	64.6	70.6	64.0	63.6	$17,473
Laredo Middle School	Public	6-8	5000 South Laredo Street	Aurora	80015	Arapahoe County	Cherry Creek School District No. 5	No	No	No	No	(720) 886-5000	846	53	15.9	50.4%	334 (39.5%)	124 (14.7%)	246 (29.1%)	54 (6.4%)	3 (0.4%)	5 (0.6%)	80 (9.5%)	37.9	260^th of 469 public middle schools	44.6%		40.2	250^th of 485 public middle schools	48.5%	10	29.2	40.9	42.7	37.0	21.8	25.5	35.1	27.0	36.6	$18,614
Horizon Middle School	Public	6-8	3981 South Reservoir Road	Aurora	80013	Arapahoe County	Cherry Creek School District No. 5	No	No	No	No	(720) 886-6100	714	49	14.5	59.4%	202 (28.3%)	118 (16.5%)	290 (40.6%)	24 (3.4%)	8 (1.1%)	2 (0.3%)	70 (9.8%)	20.9	355^th of 469 public middle schools	24.3%		18.8	381^st of 485 public middle schools	21.4%	26	24.8	33.0	26.6	28.0	19.4	16.7	14.9	17.2	23.6	$20,842
North Middle School Health Sciences and Technology Campus	Public	6-8	12095 Montview Blvd	Aurora	80010	Adams County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 364-7411	565	29	19.4	91.2%	30 (5.3%)	71 (12.6%)	401 (71.0%)	27 (4.8%)	4 (0.7%)	17 (3.0%)	15 (2.7%)	5.6	465^th of 469 public middle schools	0.9%		7.5	470^th of 485 public middle schools	3.1%	5	8.7	12.0	13.2	11.5	3.6	2.9	4.8	3.8	3.7	$20,008

Frequently Asked Questions about Prairie Middle School

How many students attend Prairie Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,491 students attended Prairie Middle School.

What high school do graduates of Prairie Middle School attend?

Students who attend Prairie Middle School usually go on to attend Overland High School

Is Prairie Middle School a good school?

Prairie Middle School ranks in the bottom 7.7% of Colorado middle schools.

What is the racial makeup of Prairie Middle School?

Students at Prairie Middle School are 47% Hispanic, 20% African American, 17% White, 9% Two or more races, 6% Asian.

What district is Prairie Middle School in?

Cherry Creek School District No. 5

Rate Prairie Middle School!

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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.