Southlawn Elementary School

Southlawn Elementary School is a public PK-5 school in Commerce City, Colorado, serving 673 students in School District 27J, a district that ranks in the bottom third of Colorado districts. The school itself consistently ranks in the bottom quarter of Colorado elementary schools, currently sitting at the 24th percentile with a 1-star rating.

Southlawn's strongest subject is reading, with 34.9% of students scoring proficient or above in ELA — right at the district average and better than several nearby schools including Henderson Elementary School, Turnberry Elementary, and High Point Academy. Math is more concerning: only 22.3% of students are proficient, compared to 26.8% across the district and 37.3% statewide. Fourth-grade math is especially weak at 17.4% proficiency. Science is the clearest red flag, with just 8.9% of 5th graders proficient — down sharply from 21.4% three years ago and far below the state average of 36.1%. Nearby Reunion Elementary School (42.7%) and Landmark Academy at Reunion (35.4%) show much stronger science results.

Attendance is another major challenge. More than one in three students (34.7%) is chronically absent, a rate that has risen over the past two years and is well above nearby Landmark Academy at Reunion (11.7%) and Reunion Elementary (18.4%). The student-teacher ratio of 21.7 is also higher than most comparable schools. That said, Lena Archuleta Elementary School, a Denver school with significantly higher poverty (77.3% free/reduced lunch) and even higher absenteeism, still outperforms Southlawn in every subject — a sign that stronger outcomes are possible in similar communities. The most urgent priorities for Southlawn are improving attendance, rebuilding science instruction, and closing the math gap.