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South High School

Q: Is South High School a good school?

South High School ranks 77 th of 328 Colorado high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

77^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 328 Colorado High Schools

Better than 77% of Colorado high schools

Summary

South High School is a public high school in Denver, Colorado, serving 1,846 students in grades 9-12. 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.

South High School has shown fluctuating performance, with its statewide ranking ranging from 77th out of 328 Colorado high schools in 2024-2025 (4-star rating) to 129th out of 221 in 2021-2022 (2-star rating). The school performs particularly well for White and Multi-racial students, but struggles with the academic achievement of Asian, African American, and English Language Learner students. South High's graduation rates have varied between 79.0% and 91.3% over the past few years, with a recent rate of 84.2% in 2023-2024.

When compared to nearby schools, South High generally outperforms Denver Online, KIPP Denver Collegiate High School, and Contemporary Learning Academy in terms of statewide ranking, test scores, and graduation rates. However, the school lags behind the higher-performing DSST: Cedar High School, which is ranked among the top 72 high schools in Colorado. South High School also faces challenges with high chronic absenteeism rates and a relatively high percentage of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds.

1,950

Students ?

19.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,619

Per pupil spending ?

38.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1700 East Louisiana Avenue
Denver, CO 80210-1810

(720) 423-6000

District: School District No. 1

Feeder schools for South High School:

Elementary:	Asbury Elementary School
	Cory Elementary School
	Lincoln Elementary School
	McKinley-Thatcher Elementary School
	More...
	Steele Elementary School
	Stephen Knight Center for Early Education
	University Park Elementary School
Middle:	Grant Beacon Middle School
	Merrill Middle School

Racial breakdown:

White:

50.9%

Hispanic:

29.6%

African American:

7.7%

See top rated Colorado high schools

Compare South High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 30th percentile in 2015 → 77th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Colorado average (62% vs 47% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 23% of Colorado high schools

✓93% graduate in 4 years — above the Colorado average (86%)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school62%

District avg41%

Colorado avg47%

77^th of 328

Colorado public high schools ?

Top 23%▲ up 47 pts since 2015

From bottom 30% (2015) to top 23% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 30High Schools in the School District No. 1

76^th 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	76.4	77 of 328	76.5%	★★★★☆
2024	69.3	98 of 349	71.9%	★★★★☆
2023	61.6	126 of 349	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	40.1	129 of 221	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	45.1	113 of 210	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	62.7	131 of 411	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	44.8	201 of 388	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2017	38.5	127 of 256	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2016	32.9	153 of 255	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2015	28.4	205 of 292	29.8%	★★☆☆☆
2014	26.9	276 of 369	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	18.9	282 of 349	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	13.3	284 of 334	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	10.8	298 of 337	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	12.6	283 of 327	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	11.1	275 of 310	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	11.9	266 of 301	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	12.1	263 of 298	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	11.9	258 of 286	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	9.8	252 of 280	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	10.3	255 of 279	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	21.1	26 of 30	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.6	29 of 38	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.4	26 of 36	27.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.8	23 of 34	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.7	17 of 29	41.4%	★★☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	7.6	38 of 43	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.4	39 of 43	9.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	8.5	38 of 43	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	3.1	42 of 45	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	0.4	41 of 41	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	41.6	36 of 59	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	57.0	24 of 84	71.4%	★★★★☆
2023	55.2	26 of 74	64.9%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2024	33.5	21 of 36	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.3	26 of 44	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.3	15 of 32	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	27.8	14 of 16	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	74.1	59 of 247	76.1%	★★★★☆
2024	67.6	80 of 257	68.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	61.2	98 of 254	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	59.0	101 of 257	60.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.9	92 of 239	61.5%	★★★☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	61.6	64 of 136	52.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	68.3	42 of 140	70.0%	★★★★☆
2023	57.5	67 of 135	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	38.9	87 of 118	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	57.5	65 of 187	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	47.6	93 of 199	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	38.0	116 of 198	41.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.6	115 of 205	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.0	95 of 181	47.5%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	43.6	108 of 194	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.3	131 of 211	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	29.0	148 of 200	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	35.0	135 of 203	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	34.4	130 of 188	30.9%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	72.7	69 of 246	72.0%	★★★★☆
2024	64.5	90 of 256	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	55.3	109 of 252	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	54.3	110 of 253	56.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.0	92 of 240	61.7%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	68.8	18 of 58	69.0%	★★★★☆
2024	55.3	34 of 61	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	57.1	28 of 62	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	36.5	37 of 56	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	9.5	46 of 48	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2022	20.0	64 of 77	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	32.6	44 of 60	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	82.5	35 of 209	83.3%	★★★★☆
2024	77.5	40 of 229	82.5%	★★★★☆
2023	72.1	66 of 234	71.8%	★★★★☆
2022	72.3	66 of 228	71.1%	★★★★☆
2021	72.4	62 of 225	72.4%	★★★★☆

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)

White (2025)83rd percentile+7 vs school

Female (2025)76th percentile~ school

Male (2025)72nd percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)69th percentile-8 vs school

Hispanic (2025)65th percentile-11 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2025)53rd percentile-24 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)44th percentile-32 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)42nd percentile-30 vs school

Disabled (2025)39th percentile-38 vs school

Special Education (2022)17th percentile-25 vs school

African American (2025)13th percentile-63 vs school

Asian (2025)12th percentile-65 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?

Reading and Writing74%+10 vs state

Mathematics56%+20 vs state

Science33%+8 vs state

4.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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Saturday, August 19, 2023

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Schools Near South High School

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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)				PSAT10 Reading and Writing (2025)	PSAT10 Mathematics (2025)	PSAT9 Reading and Writing (2025)	PSAT9 Mathematics (2025)	SAT Reading and Writing (2025)	SAT Mathematics (2025)	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	PSAT10 Reading and Writing 10th Grade	PSAT10 Mathematics 10th Grade	PSAT9 Reading and Writing 9th Grade	PSAT9 Mathematics 9th Grade	SAT Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th 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 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 8th Grade	CMAS Science 11th Grade	Total
South High School	Public	9-12	1700 East Louisiana Avenue	Denver	80210	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 423-6000	1,950	100	19.4	38.6%	992 (50.9%)	150 (7.7%)	578 (29.6%)	80 (4.1%)	8 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	133 (6.8%)	76.4	77^th of 328 public high schools	76.5%		69.3	98^th of 349 public high schools	71.9%	21	74.0	56.0	75.0	55.0	73.0	51.0										33.3	$16,619
DSST: Cedar High School	Public, Charter	9-12	150 South Pearl Street	Denver	80209	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	No	(303) 524-6350	546	35	15.7	57.1%	163 (29.9%)	139 (25.5%)	192 (35.2%)	20 (3.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.6%)	77.9	72^nd of 328 public high schools	78.0%		81.9	52^nd of 349 public high schools	85.1%	20	76.0	64.0	75.0	53.0	70.0	63.0										36.2	$13,498
5280 High School	Public, Charter	9-12	1200 W Mississippi Ave	Denver	80223	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(720) 919-1056	109	13	8.5	37.6%	68 (62.4%)	4 (3.7%)	31 (28.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.8%)	15.7	280^th of 328 public high schools	14.6%		6.1	332^nd of 349 public high schools	4.9%	52					39.0											13.6	$31,611
Denver Online	Public, Virtual	6-12	451 S. Tejon St.	Denver	80223	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	Yes	No	(720) 424-8281	611	32	18.9	65.6%	149 (24.4%)	87 (14.2%)	280 (45.8%)	22 (3.6%)	4 (0.7%)	10 (1.6%)	46 (7.5%)	34.1	221^st of 328 public high schools	32.6%		28.8	240^th of 349 public high schools	31.2%	19	63.0	19.0	50.0	17.0	51.0	26.0		40.0		29.2				8.2		37.5	$16,971
KIPP Denver Collegiate High School	Public, Charter	9-12	451 South Tejon Street	Denver	80223	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 922-5324	477	40	11.9	88.1%	7 (1.5%)	8 (1.7%)	449 (94.1%)	2 (0.4%)	4 (0.8%)	3 (0.6%)	4 (0.8%)	15.4	281^st of 328 public high schools	14.3%		16.4	293^rd of 349 public high schools	16.0%	12	30.0	16.0	42.0	20.0	39.0	21.0										14.4	$17,696
Denver Center for International Studies	Public, Magnet	6-12	574 West 6th Ave	Denver	80204	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	Yes	No	Yes	(720) 423-9000	354	26	13.5	71.5%	41 (11.6%)	13 (3.7%)	255 (72.0%)	8 (2.3%)	14 (4.0%)	1 (0.3%)	20 (5.6%)	31.4	227^th of 328 public high schools	30.8%		28.7	241^st of 349 public high schools	30.9%	14	50.0	29.0	32.0	11.0	56.0	31.0	25.8	60.0	47.5	45.9	9.1	15.0	19.0	14.8	22.0	34.3	$21,920
Denver Justice High School	Public, Charter	9-12	300 E. 9th Ave.	Denver	80203	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 480-5610	106	8	12.8	94.3%	4 (3.8%)	38 (35.8%)	59 (55.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.8%)								(n/a)																	$18,613
Contemporary Learning Academy	Public	9-12	200 E. 9th Ave.	Denver	80203	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 423-6900	126	15	8.4	81.7%	12 (9.5%)	33 (26.2%)	71 (56.3%)	2 (1.6%)	2 (1.6%)	1 (0.8%)	4 (3.2%)								(n/a)	23.0																$30,736
George Washington High School	Public	9-12	655 South Monaco Pkwy	Denver	80224	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 423-8600	1,326	65	20.5	55.2%	323 (24.4%)	298 (22.5%)	547 (41.3%)	36 (2.7%)	14 (1.1%)	5 (0.4%)	89 (6.7%)	38.8	205^th of 328 public high schools	37.5%		36.7	209^th of 349 public high schools	40.1%	4	51.0	31.0	46.0	27.0	60.0	37.0										31.5	$16,991
Delta High School	Public	9-12	655 South Monaco Parkway	Denver	80224	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 423-8740	105	7	15.0	76.2%	11 (10.5%)	29 (27.6%)	63 (60.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)								(n/a)					29.0												$22,542

Frequently Asked Questions about South High School

How many students attend South High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,950 students attended South High School.

What district is South High School in?

School District No. 1

What is the racial makeup of South High School?

Students at South High School are 51% White, 30% Hispanic, 8% African American, 7% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

Is South High School a good school?

South High School ranks 77^th of 328 Colorado high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What schools feed into South High School?

South High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Asbury Elementary School
Elementary : Cory Elementary School
Elementary : Lincoln Elementary School
Elementary : McKinley-Thatcher Elementary School
Elementary : Steele Elementary School
Elementary : Stephen Knight Center for Early Education
Elementary : University Park Elementary School
Middle : Grant Beacon Middle School
Middle : Merrill 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.