Laredo Elementary School

Laredo Elementary School is a PK-5 school in Aurora, CO, serving 449 students in the Aurora Joint District No. 28 — a district that ranks near the bottom of Colorado (8th percentile). The school has ranked in the lowest statewide percentile bands for a decade, currently sitting at the 3rd percentile (916th of 943 elementary schools). About 90% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and chronic absenteeism sits at 41% — far above the state's 28.4%. Academic proficiency is very low: 12% in ELA, 13.7% in math, and 8.3% in 5th-grade science for 2025–2026, all well below district and state averages.

There is one clear positive trend: math proficiency has risen steadily from 5.1% in 2022–2023 to 13.7% in 2025–2026, nearly tripling in three years. This actually puts Laredo slightly above the math average of its eight same-district neighbors (~11.8%). For example, Vaughn Elementary (6.2%), Tollgate Elementary (9.5%), Del Mar Academy (4.0%), and Altura Elementary (5.3%) all lag behind Laredo in math. In contrast, ELA proficiency has been flat and erratic (10.1% to 12.0% over the same period), leaving Laredo below the peer average of ~16.7%.

Chronic absenteeism is a neighborhood-wide challenge — every nearby school exceeds the state rate, but Laredo's 41% is not the worst (Del Mar has 54%, AXL 45%). More striking is that Elkhart Elementary, less than a mile away, has an even higher poverty rate (98.3%) yet far better outcomes: 25.9% ELA, 26.2% math, and a 21st-percentile rank. Clyde Miller K-8 also serves a similar population (88.2% free/reduced lunch) and reaches 25.8% ELA and 19.5% math. Laredo's state rank places it below these schools but above the very bottom of its cluster (Altura and Del Mar at 0th percentile). The path forward likely involves reducing absenteeism, sustaining math gains, and learning from nearby schools that prove high poverty doesn't have to mean low achievement.