Best Public Schools in Rush, CO

Rush, Colorado is served by the Miami-Yoder Joint District No. 60, which operates three small schools serving approximately 398 students in grades PK-12: Miami/Yoder Elementary School (PK-5), Miami-Yoder Middle/High School (6-12), and the Miami Yoder Preparatory Academy (9-12). The district ranks 87th out of 115 Colorado districts with a 1-star rating, and the majority of students in this area qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

When comparing the schools, Miami/Yoder Elementary School is the clear bright spot, having improved from the 38th to the 51st percentile in state rankings over three years and earning the district's only 3-star rating. It outperforms the district in all-grade ELA and shows a standout 5th-grade ELA proficiency rate of 57.7%, above the state average of 49.9%. In contrast, Miami-Yoder Middle/High School has declined sharply from the 38th to the 13th percentile, with math proficiency at just 16.9% versus the state's 37.3%. The Miami Yoder Preparatory Academy has limited data but posts the district's highest graduation rate at 88.9%, while the middle/high school graduates 86.4% of students—both above the state average of 85.6%. This means students are graduating at acceptable rates despite struggling academically, particularly in math, which is a systemic weakness across the district.

Families should note that literacy shows pockets of genuine strength but is inconsistent; 9th-grade PSAT Reading/Writing hit 76% proficiency in one year before dropping to 38% the next, highlighting volatility. Chronic absenteeism affects roughly one in four students at both reporting schools, and more than 60% of students are economically disadvantaged. The elementary school is improving while the secondary school is declining, suggesting a divergence worth investigating. The primary takeaways are that the elementary school is on a positive trajectory, graduation rates exceed state averages, but math proficiency and chronic absenteeism remain the most urgent challenges facing this small, high-poverty district.