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McMeen Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
730th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 950 Colorado Elementary Schools
Better than 23% of Colorado elementary schools
Summary

McMeen Elementary School is a public elementary school in Denver, Colorado, serving 630 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the School District No. 1, which is ranked 76 out of 115 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

McMeen Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom half of Colorado elementary schools over the past decade, with a 1 or 2-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school has struggled to perform well across different student subgroups, with rankings for female, male, Hispanic, and low-income students all in the bottom half or third of the state. While the school's performance for African American and English Language Learner students is slightly better, its proficiency rates on state assessments are significantly lower than district and state averages in English Language Arts, Math, and Science. Additionally, McMeen has experienced high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 27.7% to 54.5% over the past three years, which is much higher than the district and state averages.

Nearby schools, such as Highline Academy Southeast, Cory Elementary, and Creativity Challenge Community, generally outperform McMeen Elementary on academic measures, with higher proficiency rates and statewide rankings. These schools also have lower rates of chronic absenteeism, suggesting they serve a more advantaged student population. Addressing the underlying challenges at McMeen, such as attendance barriers and providing additional academic resources, could potentially help the school make progress in improving its performance.

706
Students ?
18.3
Student/teacher ratio ?
$16,986
Per pupil spending ?
63.3%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 1000 South Holly Street
       Denver, CO  80246-2308

(720) 424-5520

District: School District No. 1


Students who attend McMeen Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Hill Campus of Arts and Sciences
Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
55.7%
White:
21.2%
African American:
15.3%
more
 See top rated Colorado elementary schools

 Compare McMeen Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Rebounding — 7th percentile in 2023 → 23rd in 2025
Strengths
Ranking is rebounding — up to 23rd (2025) from a 7th-percentile low (2023)
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Colorado average (22% vs 40% meeting standards)
!In the lower quartile statewide (23rd percentile)
!High chronic absenteeism (55% vs 28% Colorado)
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school22%
District avg37%
Colorado avg40%
730th of 950
Colorado public elementary schools ?
Bottom 23%▼ down 22 pts since 2015
From bottom 46% (2015) to bottom 23% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
57th of 99Elementary Schools in the School District No. 1
76th of 115School District No. 1 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202520.8730 of 95023.2%★☆☆☆☆
202417.4771 of 94318.2%★☆☆☆☆
202311.2870 of 9336.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202213.6818 of 92111.2%★☆☆☆☆
202118.6604 of 71014.9%★☆☆☆☆
201935.4593 of 96538.5%★★☆☆☆
201829.4623 of 91732.1%★★☆☆☆
201733.0601 of 92935.3%★★☆☆☆
201634.1570 of 91437.6%★★☆☆☆
201540.7511 of 93845.5%★★☆☆☆
201431.3691 of 96228.2%★☆☆☆☆
201330.2700 of 95426.6%★☆☆☆☆
201236.2644 of 93531.1%★★☆☆☆
201131.2685 of 93526.7%★☆☆☆☆
201031.1677 of 92526.8%★☆☆☆☆
200928.3680 of 87222.0%★☆☆☆☆
200820.5702 of 84917.3%★☆☆☆☆
200721.9694 of 85218.5%★☆☆☆☆
200621.3676 of 82918.5%★☆☆☆☆
200525.6647 of 82321.4%★☆☆☆☆
200427.8616 of 80823.8%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
201946.311 of 2352.2%★★★☆☆
201843.010 of 1533.3%★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
201950.020 of 4353.5%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202519.7548 of 69421.0%★☆☆☆☆
202424.5516 of 68424.6%★☆☆☆☆
20236.5631 of 6421.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20228.9567 of 5954.7%☆☆☆☆☆
201930.3510 of 75832.7%★★☆☆☆
201823.0546 of 69020.9%★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202416.8224 of 2427.4%☆☆☆☆☆
202231.3100 of 15334.6%★★☆☆☆
201950.1113 of 27058.1%★★★☆☆
201815.6161 of 1726.4%☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202531.7243 of 33727.9%★☆☆☆☆
202415.6339 of 3657.1%☆☆☆☆☆
202223.4173 of 20314.8%★☆☆☆☆
201965.679 of 33276.2%★★★★☆
201826.3252 of 30818.2%★☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202522.8520 of 70025.7%★☆☆☆☆
202411.6631 of 6837.6%☆☆☆☆☆
202312.6588 of 6499.4%☆☆☆☆☆
202222.7453 of 59423.7%★☆☆☆☆
201931.0509 of 76433.4%★★☆☆☆
201821.8549 of 69320.8%★☆☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202425.8431 of 53920.0%★☆☆☆☆
201936.1392 of 59634.2%★★☆☆☆
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)
English Language Learner (2019)53rd percentile+15 vs school
African American (2019)52nd percentile+14 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)28th percentile+5 vs school
Male (2025)26th percentile+3 vs school
Female (2025)21st percentile~ school
White (2024)20th percentile~ school
Hispanic (2024)7th percentile-11 vs school
By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?
English Language Arts33%-12 vs state
Math18%-18 vs state
Science14%-26 vs state

2.0
4 ratings · 4 written reviews
51
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13
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What people are saying
by a parent
Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Open Quote My son is in his first year at McMeen and we can't stand the school. They tell you one thing and then the exact opposite is what occurs. Our first 2 years of preschool were at Bradley International and we loved it there, but we are out of district for them and McMeen is our home school. You can tell that some of the teachers are just done with it and over it as they put forth little effort with the kids because they are overworked and underpaid. They do little to assist the kids with Bullies. They "talk" to the other child and nothing ever changes. Trying to get answers from anyone in the school is like pulling teeth. Close Quote


by a parent
Friday, November 8, 2019

Open Quote worst decision of our life, beware of this place. Nothing good comes from Principal Adams. He is one of the rudest humans to walk the earth. Avoid this school like a plague. Close Quote


by a parent
Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Open Quote Teacher s with no degrees complete disrespect from teachers they also treat students horribly Close Quote


by a parent
Thursday, September 1, 2016

Open Quote This school is a multicultural quilt of languages and cultures. My son has attended 1st - 5th here and had incredible relationships with his teachers who have encouraged him to do his best, be bonded with his school, and sustain strong relationships. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about McMeen Elementary School

Students who attend McMeen Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Hill Campus of Arts and Sciences

In the 2024-25 school year, 706 students attended McMeen Elementary School.

McMeen Elementary School ranks in the bottom 23.2% of Colorado elementary schools.

Students at McMeen Elementary School are 56% Hispanic, 21% White, 15% African American, 4% Two or more races, 3% Asian.


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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.





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