Colorado City Unified District

Colorado City Unified District has two schools serving PK through grade 12: Cottonwood Elementary serves PK–5, and El Capitan Public School serves grades 6–12. In 2025–26, both schools’ reported All Grades results were above state rates in ELA and math: ELA was 43% at Cottonwood and 50% at El Capitan, compared with 41% statewide; math was 54% and 42%, compared with 33% statewide. The main takeaway is that neither school leads in every subject: Cottonwood is stronger in the reported math results, while El Capitan is stronger in ELA.

The schools stand out in different areas, with El Capitan leading ELA by 7 percentage points and Cottonwood leading math by 12 points. Cottonwood’s math result is 21 points above the state rate, while El Capitan’s ELA result is 9 points above it. Both schools also reported 69% proficient in science in 2024–25: Cottonwood’s grade 5 result was 35 points above its state comparison, and El Capitan’s grade 8 result was 39 points above its comparison. El Capitan’s grade 6 results are a particular high point, at 69% in both ELA and math—28 and 39 points above state rates. One exception within Cottonwood is grade 3 ELA, at 33%, 6 points below the state rate; its grade 5 ELA result was 53%, 15 points above the state rate.

SchoolDigger rankings show fluctuations rather than a steady climb: Cottonwood moved from the 70th percentile in 2023–24 to 80th in 2024–25, then 64th in 2025–26 (3 stars); El Capitan went from the 69th percentile in 2021–22 to 92nd in 2022–23, then 76th in 2024–25 (4 stars). Cottonwood enrolls 338 students and has a student-teacher ratio of 18.7, compared with 206 students and a 20.6 ratio at El Capitan. For families weighing upper-grade outcomes, El Capitan’s graduation rate is a concern: 68% in 2024–25, 12 points below the state’s 80%. Because the schools serve different grade spans, and the listed AASA All Grades results cover just one year, neither school-to-school grade comparisons nor proficiency trends can be established from these figures.