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Central Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-6

890^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 946 Colorado Elementary Schools

Better than 6% of Colorado elementary schools

Summary

Central Elementary School serves 421 students in grades PK–6 in Commerce City, CO, and is part of School District N. 14, which ranks 115th out of 115 Colorado districts. The school has the highest poverty concentration in its immediate area, with 90.5% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch — a rate that exceeds same-district peers like Kemp Elementary School (88.6%), Rose Hill Elementary School (88.9%), and Monaco Elementary School (87.1%), and is dramatically higher than nearby Denver schools Inspire Elementary (25.4%) and Willow Elementary (29.0%). Academically, Central sits well below state averages: 13.4% of students are proficient in English Language Arts and 11.7% in math, versus state averages of 44.7% and 37.3%.

Chronic absenteeism is one of the school's biggest challenges — 44.8% of students miss enough school to be considered chronically absent, compared with 28.4% statewide. By contrast, higher-performing nearby schools like Inspire Elementary (17.8%) and Willow Elementary (19.5%) have much lower rates. Class sizes have also grown, with the student-teacher ratio rising from 13.2 to 16.8 over the past two years — the highest among same-district elementary schools. Still, there are bright spots: Central's 5th-grade science proficiency of 17% is above the district average of 11.8% and better than same-district peers like Dupont Elementary School (8.8%) and Rose Hill Elementary School (15.4%). Math proficiency, while improving, declines across grade levels, dropping from 16.1% in 3rd grade to 8.5% in 5th grade.

Central is on a clear upward trajectory, though from a very low starting point. ELA proficiency has more than doubled over two years (from 5.8% to 13.4%), and math jumped from 4.9% to 11.7%, lifting the school from 946th to 887th in state rankings. However, there is still meaningful room for improvement: Community Leadership Academy, a charter school just half a mile away serving a similarly high-poverty population, outscores Central substantially in both ELA (32.8% vs. 13.4%) and math (21.6% vs. 11.7%). Reducing chronic absenteeism appears to be one of the most actionable levers, and the school's success in science suggests targeted instructional efforts can produce measurable gains worth applying to other subjects.

421

Students ?

16.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,122

Per pupil spending ?

90.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

6450 Holly Street
Commerce City, CO 80022-2506

(303) 287-0327

District: School District N. 14

Students who attend Central Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Kearney Middle School
High:	Adams City High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

88.1%

African American:

5.5%

White:

4.5%

See top rated Colorado elementary schools

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 5th percentile in 2012 → 6th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Colorado average (13% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (6th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (45% vs 28% Colorado)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school13%

District avg13%

Colorado avg41%

890^th of 946

Colorado public elementary schools ?

Bottom 6%▲ up 1 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 6Elementary Schools in the School District N. 14

114^th of 114School District N. 14 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
2026	9.8	890 of 946	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	4.8	946 of 950	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.5	898 of 965	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.1	896 of 917	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	8.1	901 of 929	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	9.7	872 of 914	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	11.3	879 of 938	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	6.9	932 of 962	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	5.7	916 of 954	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	7.0	892 of 935	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	6.0	885 of 935	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	9.3	849 of 925	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	10.7	789 of 872	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	7.7	794 of 849	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	10.8	770 of 852	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	8.9	760 of 829	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	8.8	759 of 823	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	14.2	708 of 808	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	9.9	659 of 695	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	7.3	673 of 697	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.0	728 of 764	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Female (2026)5th percentile~ school

Male (2026)3rd percentile~ school

By subject vs Colorado (2025-2026) ?

Science17%-19 vs state

English Language Arts13%-31 vs state

Math12%-26 vs state

★

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Schools Near Central Elementary 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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CMAS English Language Arts (2026)					CMAS Math (2026)					CMAS Science (2026)	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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CMAS English Language Arts 3rd Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 5th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 6th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts All Grades	CMAS Math 3rd Grade	CMAS Math 4th Grade	CMAS Math 5th Grade	CMAS Math 6th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	Total
Central Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	6450 Holly Street	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 287-0327	421	25	16.8	90.5%	19 (4.5%)	23 (5.5%)	371 (88.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	5 (1.2%)	9.8	890^th of 946 public elementary schools	5.9%		4.8	946^th of 950 public elementary schools	0.4%	56	708.0	703.0	25.5	11.1	13.4	16.1	12.2	8.5	9.5	11.7	17.0	$18,122
University Prep - Commerce City	Public, Charter	PK-K	6201 Holly Street	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(303) 866-6600	24	0		54.2%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (95.8%)	1 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)												$27,889
Community Leadership Academy	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	6880 Holly Street	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 288-2711	316	13	24.4	85.1%	12 (3.8%)	2 (0.6%)	298 (94.3%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	21.6	720^th of 946 public elementary schools	23.9%		12.8	845^th of 950 public elementary schools	11.1%	125	36.4	34.2	26.5		32.8	29.5	13.2	20.6		21.6	11.8	$14,423
Kemp Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	6775 Oneida Street	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 288-6633	517	31	16.5	88.6%	27 (5.2%)	2 (0.4%)	483 (93.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.0%)	15.3	810^th of 946 public elementary schools	14.4%		12.5	852^nd of 950 public elementary schools	10.3%	42	22.7	14.3	10.0	16.9	15.6	38.5	20.8	13.3	12.5	21.2	705.0	$17,235
Alsup Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	4413 E. 68th Ave	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 853-3333	492	30	16.1	85.4%	49 (10.0%)	2 (0.4%)	423 (86.0%)	4 (0.8%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	10 (2.0%)	11.4	870^th of 946 public elementary schools	8.0%		9.3	899^th of 950 public elementary schools	5.4%	29	22.8	25.7	19.4	12.9	20.4	19.3	10.4	9.7	7.8	11.5	19.4	$18,426
Rose Hill Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	6900 East 58th Avenue	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 287-0163	315	22	14.1	88.9%	25 (7.9%)	10 (3.2%)	273 (86.7%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.9%)	8.5	906^th of 946 public elementary schools	4.2%					(n/a)	6.8	20.4	17.3	9.8	14.0	700.0	16.3	7.7	702.0	9.4	15.4	$19,535
Monaco Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	7631 Monaco Boulevard	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 287-0307	434	27	15.7	87.1%	47 (10.8%)	7 (1.6%)	374 (86.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	8.6	904^th of 946 public elementary schools	4.4%		12.3	854^th of 950 public elementary schools	10.1%	50	22.5	23.9	11.8	12.2	17.2	14.0	7.1	704.0	708.0	9.0	705.0	$17,884
Dupont Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	7970 Kimberly Street	Commerce City	80022	Adams County	School District N. 14	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 287-0189	488	31	15.7	87.1%	33 (6.8%)	2 (0.4%)	446 (91.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.2%)	13.2	841^st of 946 public elementary schools	11.1%		9.8	890^th of 950 public elementary schools	6.3%	49	716.0	722.0	25.0	23.9	22.2	17.5	711.0	705.0	13.4	11.3	8.8	$17,140
Willow Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	8499 E Stoll Place	Denver	80238	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-2100	596	36	16.5	29.0%	276 (46.3%)	54 (9.1%)	157 (26.3%)	41 (6.9%)	3 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	64 (10.7%)	89.9	73^rd of 946 public elementary schools	92.3%		83.3	135^th of 950 public elementary schools	85.8%	62	54.8	76.6	86.2		72.6	55.4	75.0	78.2		69.6	66.7	$16,588
Inspire Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	5650 N Elmira Ct	Denver	80238	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-4850	645	37	17.4	25.4%	359 (55.7%)	41 (6.4%)	163 (25.3%)	26 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	54 (8.4%)	72.7	234^th of 946 public elementary schools	75.3%		79.4	182^nd of 950 public elementary schools	80.8%	52	54.5	53.3	61.5		56.4	59.6	45.6	55.1		53.6	49.4	$15,706

Frequently Asked Questions about Central Elementary School

How many students attend Central Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 421 students attended Central Elementary School.

What schools do graduates of Central Elementary School attend?

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

Middle : Kearney Middle School
High : Adams City High School

What is the racial makeup of Central Elementary School?

Students at Central Elementary School are 88% Hispanic, 5% African American, 5% White, 1% Two or more races.

What district is Central Elementary School in?

School District N. 14

Is Central Elementary School a good school?

Central Elementary School ranks in the bottom 5.9% of Colorado elementary schools.

Rate Central Elementary School!

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Latest Colorado data All new data »

2025–26 CMAS, PSAT10, PSAT9 & SAT test scoresAug 19, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 13, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataAug 27, 2025

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.