Summary:
Upper Rio Grande School District C-7 is a small, rural Colorado district serving 360 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across two schools on a single campus in Del Norte: Del Norte Elementary School (grades K–6, 187 students) and Del Norte High Junior/Senior High School (grades 7–12, 173 students). The district overall ranks 44th out of 115 Colorado districts with a 3-star rating, but the two schools are very different — the elementary school sits at the 27th percentile statewide with a 1-star rating, while the high school ranks at the 57th percentile with a 3-star rating.
Del Norte High Junior/Senior High School is the clear academic standout. Its state ranking has climbed from the 25th percentile in 2023–2024 to the 57th percentile in 2025–2026, and it meets or exceeds state averages in overall CMAS English language arts (46.6% vs. 44.7%) and math (37.9% vs. 37.3%). Eighth graders are especially strong, with 57.1% proficient in ELA and 50% in math, well above state averages. PSAT9 and PSAT10 reading/writing scores are excellent, and the graduation rate of 89.3% beats the state's 85.6%. Del Norte Elementary School, by contrast, struggles academically — just 26% proficient in ELA and 19% in math — but stands out for very low chronic absenteeism (16.4% vs. 28.4% statewide) and a favorable 8.9-to-1 student–teacher ratio.
The most urgent concern is elementary math, which drops to just 17.2% proficiency in 6th grade and feeds into 7th-grade math struggles (26.7% vs. 32.9% statewide). The high school's 38.5% chronic absenteeism rate is also a serious warning sign, even though the school still outperforms state averages and graduates students at a higher rate than the state. Both schools serve majority low-income populations (56.7% and 51.5% free/reduced lunch), making the high school's achievements especially notable. For parents, the picture is mixed: the elementary school provides a well-attended environment with small classes but weak test scores, while the high school offers rising academics, strong literacy, and solid graduation outcomes tempered by high absenteeism.
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