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East Middle School

Public Grades 6-8

462^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 476 Colorado Middle Schools

Better than 3% of Colorado middle schools

Summary

East Middle School is a grade 6–8 middle school in Aurora, Colorado, serving 634 students as part of Aurora Joint District No. 28, a district ranked in the bottom 10% of Colorado districts.

The school faces significant challenges. Academic proficiency rates are among the lowest in the state, with 11.8% of students proficient in English Language Arts, 9.2% in Math, and 6.5% in 8th-grade Science, compared to state averages of 44.7%, 37.3%, and 35.4%. Chronic absenteeism affects 47.1% of students—nearly 20 percentage points above the state rate—and has worsened in recent years. The student-to-teacher ratio has also spiked dramatically, from 16.4 in 2022–2023 to 26.4 in 2024–2025, the highest among all nearby schools, which may limit the individualized attention students receive. The school serves a highly economically disadvantaged population, with 92.1% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.

Comparisons with nearby schools show that different outcomes are possible. Aurora Science & Technical Middle School, located just 3.1 miles away in the same district, achieves nearly triple East’s ELA proficiency rate (31.1% vs. 11.8%) with a much lower student-to-teacher ratio of 13.3. DSST: Green Valley Ranch Middle School, a Denver school serving a high-poverty population (79.9% FRL), achieves 39.6% ELA proficiency and has a chronic absenteeism rate of only 25.8%—half of East’s rate. These examples suggest that improvement is possible even with similar demographic challenges. For parents considering East Middle School, the key concerns are the very low academic outcomes across all subjects and grade levels, high absenteeism, and a rising student-to-teacher ratio that may limit support. No grade level or subject shows a bright spot, and even gifted and talented students perform in the bottom 1% statewide.

634

Students ?

26.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,770

Per pupil spending ?

92.1%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in Colorado receive free school meals.

1275 Fraser St
Aurora, CO 80011-7050

(303) 340-0660

District: Aurora Joint District No. 28

Students who attend East Middle School usually attend:

High:

Hinkley High School

Feeder schools for East Middle School:

Elementary:	Elkhart Elementary School
	Laredo Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

78.2%

African American:

8.8%

White:

4.6%

See top rated Colorado middle schools

Compare East Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 7th percentile in 2016 → 3rd in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Colorado average (10% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (3rd percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (39% vs 28% Colorado)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school10%

District avg23%

Colorado avg41%

462^nd of 476

Colorado public middle schools ?

Bottom 3%▼ down 4 pts since 2016

From bottom 7% (2016) to bottom 3% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 6Middle Schools in the Aurora Joint District No. 28

105^th of 114Aurora Joint District No. 28 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	8.0	462 of 476	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	6.6	460 of 469	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.6	462 of 485	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.3	461 of 480	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.3	422 of 448	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.3	364 of 369	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.5	398 of 458	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.0	368 of 418	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	14.3	375 of 424	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	12.4	372 of 400	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	15.3	391 of 436	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	7.4	440 of 461	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	5.9	434 of 454	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	6.7	401 of 425	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	9.2	391 of 422	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	6.6	390 of 409	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	8.3	352 of 377	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	5.3	346 of 362	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	6.5	337 of 360	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	5.2	329 of 346	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	6.3	323 of 340	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	5.5	319 of 336	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	24.0	28 of 33	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.3	18 of 22	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	5.9	362 of 368	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	5.0	344 of 347	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.1	343 of 350	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.8	353 of 363	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.8	314 of 326	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.9	319 of 352	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.0	295 of 315	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2024	0.4	125 of 126	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	1.4	124 of 125	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	1.3	93 of 93	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	3.7	120 of 121	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	10.2	202 of 208	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.3	215 of 218	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.6	189 of 199	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.9	189 of 198	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.5	156 of 169	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	23.1	178 of 220	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.8	137 of 165	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2023	17.0	231 of 241	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	19.8	177 of 197	10.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	29.8	174 of 240	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.2	170 of 222	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	6.6	368 of 372	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	5.2	350 of 352	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.8	353 of 357	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.9	350 of 356	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	8.1	317 of 328	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.9	302 of 343	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.7	281 of 317	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2019	16.3	243 of 283	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2019)15th percentile~ school

White (2019)14th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2023)4th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2026)3rd percentile~ school

Female (2026)2nd percentile~ school

Male (2026)1st percentile~ school

Gifted and Talented (2024)1st percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts12%-33 vs state

Math9%-28 vs state

Science6%-29 vs state

2.3

3 ratings · 2 written reviews

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1★2

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What people are saying

by a student
Thursday, December 5, 2019

this school is both mentally and physically abusive. and the homework here is pointless and the teachers suck at teaching. and most of the children here are bad Close Quote

by a teacher
Wednesday, August 24, 2016

There was never a day that I felt safe at East Middle School. This school is run by the students. Students do whatever they want, talk back to teachers, call teachers names, throw things at the teachers, use their cellphones in class, trash school property….the list goes on. This school has up to 11 fights in one day, stacks of daily referrals, and a classroom that is full of those that are suspended for the week. If you are a kid who listens to the teacher and does your work and actually is eager to learn - this is not the place for you.
Not only a poor communicator, Principal, Biaze Houston is an inept leader. She and her administrators are always in a meeting. They have limited knowledge of what is actually going on in the school. Teachers, who are already overloaded, are required to sub for teachers who are absent, while there are several administrators sitting around in some “important” meeting. Despite all of these meetings, conditions at East Middle School continue to get worse. What do Ms. Houston and her team of meeting-loving administrators plan to do moving forward? Close Quote

Schools Near East Middle 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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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 5th 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 5th Grade	CMAS Math 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	CMAS Science 8th Grade	Total
East Middle School	Public	6-8	1275 Fraser St	Aurora	80011	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 340-0660	634	24	26.4	92.1%	29 (4.6%)	56 (8.8%)	496 (78.2%)	23 (3.6%)	3 (0.5%)	9 (1.4%)	18 (2.8%)	8	462^nd of 476 public middle schools	2.9%		6.6	460^th of 469 public middle schools	1.9%	2		14.6	10.0	10.8	11.8		7.3	8.8	11.2	9.2		6.5	$17,770
North Middle School Health Sciences and Technology Campus	Public	6-8	12095 Montview Blvd	Aurora	80010	Adams County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 364-7411	565	29	19.4	91.2%	30 (5.3%)	71 (12.6%)	401 (71.0%)	27 (4.8%)	4 (0.7%)	17 (3.0%)	15 (2.7%)	5.6	472^nd of 476 public middle schools	0.8%		5.6	465^th of 469 public middle schools	0.9%	7		4.1	7.3	10.5	7.2		3.5	4.3	6.8	4.9		6.8	$20,008
Aurora Hills Middle School	Public	6-8	1009 South Uvalda St	Aurora	80012	Arapahoe County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 341-7450	821	49	16.6	85.9%	49 (6.0%)	137 (16.7%)	536 (65.3%)	41 (5.0%)	6 (0.7%)	6 (0.7%)	46 (5.6%)	10.3	450^th of 476 public middle schools	5.5%		7	458^th of 469 public middle schools	2.3%	8		16.7	16.2	12.5	15.0		11.4	7.5	18.1	12.5		7.1	$20,227
Aurora Science & Technical Middle School	Public, Charter	6-8	10455 East 25th Avenue	Aurora	80010	Adams County	Aurora Joint District No. 28	Yes	No	No	No	(303) 524-6397	448	34	13.3	85.7%	33 (7.4%)	35 (7.8%)	352 (78.6%)	11 (2.5%)	2 (0.4%)	3 (0.7%)	12 (2.7%)	22.6	350^th of 476 public middle schools	26.5%		17.1	392^nd of 469 public middle schools	16.4%	42		20.7	40.0	33.1	31.1		15.2	14.2	17.3	15.5		19.4	$34,401
KIPP Northeast Denver Middle School	Public, Charter	5-8	4636 Walden St	Denver	80249	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 307-1970	464	39	11.8	80.8%	28 (6.0%)	117 (25.2%)	252 (54.3%)	33 (7.1%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (3.2%)	19 (4.1%)	27.7	320^th of 476 public middle schools	32.8%		28	325^th of 469 public middle schools	30.7%	5	32.4	16.5	36.7	35.8	30.5	20.4	13.6	24.8	35.8	23.7	15.0	16.2	$16,821
Rocky Mountain Prep Noel	Public, Charter	6-8	5290 Kittredge St	Denver	80239	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 999-3825	287	19	15.3	87.8%	9 (3.1%)	42 (14.6%)	208 (72.5%)	5 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (4.9%)	9 (3.1%)	9.9	453^rd of 476 public middle schools	4.8%		7.2	456^th of 469 public middle schools	2.8%	3		7.5	11.0	15.7	11.4		9.0	12.2	20.3	13.8		5.7	$18,531
Montbello Middle School	Public	6-8	5290 Kittredge St	Denver	80239	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(720) 424-0850	315	22	14.3	91.7%	10 (3.2%)	48 (15.2%)	220 (69.8%)	3 (1.0%)	1 (0.3%)	23 (7.3%)	9 (2.9%)	6.2	469^th of 476 public middle schools	1.5%		5.3	466^th of 469 public middle schools	0.6%	3		7.1	13.3	6.1	8.6		10.6	710.0	706.0	6.8		4.9	$20,134
DSST: Green Valley Ranch Middle School	Public, Charter	6-8	4800 Telluride Street Building 3	Denver	80249	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 524-6300	482	32	15.1	79.9%	18 (3.7%)	123 (25.5%)	252 (52.3%)	56 (11.6%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.5%)	21 (4.4%)	35.3	276^th of 476 public middle schools	42.0%		34.2	284^th of 469 public middle schools	39.4%	8		29.3	53.7	35.8	39.6		18.7	26.2	25.2	23.3		25.2	$10,707
Prairie Middle School	Public	6-8	12600 East Jewell Avenue	Aurora	80012	Arapahoe County	Cherry Creek School District No. 5	No	No	No	No	(720) 747-3000	1,491	98	15.2	68.3%	250 (16.8%)	305 (20.5%)	705 (47.3%)	86 (5.8%)	8 (0.5%)	6 (0.4%)	129 (8.7%)	14.6	421^st of 476 public middle schools	11.6%		11.5	433^rd of 469 public middle schools	7.7%	12		19.7	22.1	23.8	21.9		10.8	11.0	16.2	12.8		16.6	$17,587
Rocky Mountain Prep Green Valley Ranch	Public, Charter	6-8	4800 Telluride St Bldg #5	Denver	80249	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 999-2893	379	19	19.6	83.6%	14 (3.7%)	71 (18.7%)	244 (64.4%)	31 (8.2%)	1 (0.3%)	8 (2.1%)	10 (2.6%)	15.2	417^th of 476 public middle schools	12.4%		15.8	402^nd of 469 public middle schools	14.3%	15		23.1	20.7	28.1	24.0		14.5	9.1	12.4	12.1		14.3	$14,268

Frequently Asked Questions about East Middle School

How many students attend East Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 634 students attended East Middle School.

What is the racial makeup of East Middle School?

Students at East Middle School are 78% Hispanic, 9% African American, 5% White, 4% Asian, 3% Two or more races, 1% Pacific Islander.

What high school do graduates of East Middle School attend?

Students who attend East Middle School usually go on to attend Hinkley High School

What district is East Middle School in?

Aurora Joint District No. 28

Is East Middle School a good school?

East Middle School ranks in the bottom 2.9% of Colorado middle schools.

Rate East Middle School!

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Latest Colorado data All new data »

2017–18 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

2025–26 attendance dataOct 6, 2026

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

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

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.