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Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning

Q: Is Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning a good school?

Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning ranks 294 th of 946 Colorado elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

294^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 946 Colorado Elementary Schools

Better than 69% of Colorado elementary schools

Summary

Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning is an elementary school in Denver's School District No. 1 serving 477 students in grades PK–5. The school has earned a 3-star state rating and ranks in the 69th percentile of Colorado elementary schools, placing it well above the district and state averages in English Language Arts, math, and science.

Centennial's defining story is its remarkable, sustained turnaround. A decade ago, the school ranked in the 11th percentile, but by 2021–2022 it had jumped to the 68th percentile, where it has remained for four consecutive years. This durable improvement sets it apart from many peers. The school also boasts excellent attendance, with a chronic absenteeism rate of just 13.1%—far lower than the district rate of 38.1% and better than nearly every school within two miles, including Beach Court (46.3%) and Columbian (61.1%). Its 27.88% free/reduced lunch rate is also notably lower than several nearby schools, such as Valdez (49.9%) and Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley (60.2%). While Centennial outpaces several lower-tier neighbors like Stevens and Beach Court, it trails higher-ranked options in the area, including Edison Elementary School (97th percentile) and Valdez Elementary School (85th percentile).

Academically, Centennial's ELA proficiency has been stable (58.4%), and its 5th-grade science scores are a quiet strength at 47.0%, outperforming the district by nearly 14 points. The area to watch is math, which dipped to 44.9% in 2025–2026 after several years in the low-to-mid 50s. Fourth-grade ELA is a highlight at 66.7% proficient, while 3rd-grade reading (50.8%) offers room for growth. In its immediate neighborhood, Centennial is a reliable, upper-middle-tier choice—a stable, above-average school that has transformed itself into a consistent performer.

477

Students ?

17.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,352

Per pupil spending ?

27.9%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in Colorado receive free school meals.

4665 Raleigh Street
Denver, CO 80212-2560

(720) 424-8900

District: School District No. 1

Students who attend Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning usually attend:

Middle:	Rocky Mountain Prep Sunnyside
	Skinner Middle School
High:	North High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

63.7%

Hispanic:

26.0%

Two or more races:

5.9%

See top rated Colorado elementary schools

Compare Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 14th percentile in 2015 → 69th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Colorado average (51% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 55 percentile points since 2015

✓Above the Colorado median (69th percentile)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school51%

District avg38%

Colorado avg41%

294^th of 946

Colorado public elementary schools ?

Top 31%▲ up 42 pts since 2016

From bottom 27% (2016) to top 31% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

28^th of 99Elementary Schools in the School District No. 1

69^th of 114School District No. 1 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	66.6	294 of 946	68.9%	★★★☆☆
2025	72.4	252 of 950	73.5%	★★★★☆
2024	67.2	294 of 943	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	65.5	290 of 933	68.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	65.6	291 of 921	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	21.0	764 of 965	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.7	801 of 917	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	13.8	824 of 929	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	24.7	670 of 914	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	16.3	804 of 938	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	10.9	885 of 962	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	7.4	899 of 954	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	10.8	847 of 935	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	20.7	756 of 935	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	12.3	823 of 925	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	12.7	774 of 872	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	11.2	765 of 849	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	10.2	776 of 852	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	14.0	725 of 829	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	14.9	716 of 823	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	13.1	715 of 808	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	56.2	283 of 695	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	63.2	229 of 694	67.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.9	252 of 684	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.4	287 of 642	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	55.0	263 of 595	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	18.2	635 of 758	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	58.9	271 of 697	61.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	65.5	216 of 700	69.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	57.0	275 of 683	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	59.1	243 of 649	62.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	58.2	232 of 594	60.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	16.6	652 of 764	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	64.6	182 of 547	66.7%	★★★☆☆
2025	67.4	158 of 551	71.3%	★★★★☆
2024	66.3	174 of 539	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	58.4	215 of 525	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	79.8	67 of 454	85.2%	★★★★☆

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)

White (2026)67th percentile~ school

Male (2026)61st percentile-8 vs school

Female (2026)59th percentile-10 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts58%+14 vs state

Science47%+11 vs state

Math45%+8 vs state

3.3

3 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★1

4★1

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Centennial used to have an amazing program teaching Expeditionary Learning and the students loved it. The program changed to EL learning and now all they focus on is, sexuality and politics. The current interim Principal Emily Volkert has destroyed the school with her political dogma. So many of the local families are fleeing Centennial for other schools nearby.

Emily Volkert has turned Centennial into a Maoist institution where the children are not allowed to celebrate holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas or Valentines Day, because as she said they need to "focus on decentralizing white religion". She is trying to place her white guilt on our children and the families won't stand for it.

Hopefully Principal Volkert is removed this year but until she is again there will never be a focus on academics at Centennial. Close Quote

by a teacher
Friday, June 7, 2013

Expeditionary Learning! We get to have it...in our own neighborhood school! 1st DPS non-charter EL school! Get ready for exemplary, inquiry based, year long expeditions not traditionally offered to traditional school staff and students. As a new member of the Centennial Expeditionary staff, I am so appreciating the "Yes...do it!!" attitude of the school leaders. Kinder crew...are you ready to become entomologists? See you this fall! Close Quote

by a parent
Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Centennial is a place that truly makes all children feel welcome. I have been sort of forced out of neighboring schools by principals who clearly did not want my learning disabled child to mess up their scores. Centennial is a calm and wonderful place with great teachers who care about the whole child. Close Quote

Schools Near Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning

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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 3rd Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	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 3rd Grade	CMAS Math 4th Grade	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
Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning	Public	PK, KG-5	4665 Raleigh Street	Denver	80212	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-8900	477	27	17.5	27.9%	304 (63.7%)	9 (1.9%)	124 (26.0%)	4 (0.8%)	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	28 (5.9%)	66.6	294^th of 946 public elementary schools	68.9%		72.4	252^nd of 950 public elementary schools	73.5%	42	50.8	66.7	57.1				58.4	43.1	44.1	47.7				44.9	47.0		$17,352
Rocky Mountain Prep Berkeley	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	3752 Tennyson Street	Denver	80212	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 464-3550	329	22	14.7	60.2%	101 (30.7%)	38 (11.6%)	166 (50.5%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	20 (6.1%)	36.7	559^th of 946 public elementary schools	40.9%		46.9	471^st of 950 public elementary schools	50.4%	88	24.3	34.8	45.7				34.7	18.9	37.0	35.3				30.8	47.1		$17,396
Ricardo Flores Magon Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	5301 Lowell Boulevard	Denver	80221	Adams County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 412-7610	292	18	16.3	83.6%	9 (3.1%)	4 (1.4%)	277 (94.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)								(n/a)	13.0	7.7	710.0	721.0	11.1	17.1	10.6	707.0	705.0	701.0	702.0	707.0	702.0	2.6	689.0	7.3	$16,889
Edison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3350 Quitman Street	Denver	80212	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-7780	583	32	18.1	18.0%	406 (69.6%)	12 (2.1%)	111 (19.0%)	14 (2.4%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	37 (6.3%)	94.4	32^nd of 946 public elementary schools	96.6%		91	64^th of 950 public elementary schools	93.3%	32	70.9	80.3	77.8				76.1	74.7	73.3	69.1				72.4	71.6		$16,231
Beach Court Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4950 Beach Court	Denver	80221	Adams County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-9470	275	19	14.6	89.5%	31 (11.3%)	7 (2.5%)	234 (85.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	13.2	840^th of 946 public elementary schools	11.2%		20.9	725^th of 950 public elementary schools	23.7%	115	25.0	15.4	27.8				23.3	19.4	12.5	19.4				17.3	713.0		$19,065
Academia Ana Marie Sandoval	Public	PK, KG-6	3655 Wyandot Street	Denver	80211	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-4370	409	22	18.2	38.6%	133 (32.5%)	1 (0.2%)	253 (61.9%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (4.2%)	43.7	483^rd of 946 public elementary schools	48.9%		34.3	577^th of 950 public elementary schools	39.3%	94	736.0	48.4	41.2				41.1	45.5	28.9	728.0				33.3	32.3		$17,987
Brown International Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	2550 Lowell Blvd	Denver	80211	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-9250	530	31	17.1	31.3%	325 (61.3%)	23 (4.3%)	129 (24.3%)	10 (1.9%)	3 (0.6%)	9 (1.7%)	31 (5.8%)	72.3	239^th of 946 public elementary schools	74.7%		77.4	208^th of 950 public elementary schools	78.1%	31	59.2	64.4	59.1				60.9	51.3	68.5	40.9				54.0	39.4		$17,382
Stevens Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4001 Reed Street	Wheat Ridge	80033	Jefferson County	Jefferson County School District No. R-1	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 982-2198	469	36	13.0	65.9%	216 (46.1%)	10 (2.1%)	223 (47.5%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	15 (3.2%)	24.5	685^th of 946 public elementary schools	27.6%		16.7	784^th of 950 public elementary schools	17.5%	99	22.5	34.3	45.3				33.7	16.9	19.7	20.3				18.9	33.3		$18,474
Foster Dual Language Pk-8	Public	PK, KG-8	5300 Saulsbury Court	Arvada	80002	Jefferson County	Jefferson County School District No. R-1	No	No	No	Yes	(303) 982-1680	454	28	15.9	50.2%	86 (18.9%)	0 (0.0%)	345 (76.0%)	6 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.7%)	30.5	616^th of 946 public elementary schools	34.9%		32.7	590^th of 950 public elementary schools	37.9%	26	43.6	57.1	29.8	28.9	31.3	30.4	35.8	23.1	34.0	27.7	15.2	20.8	17.8	23.3	19.1	26.1	$18,040
Valdez Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2525 West 29th Avenue	Denver	80211	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-3310	423	24	17.7	49.9%	100 (23.6%)	5 (1.2%)	304 (71.9%)	5 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.1%)	83.4	145^th of 946 public elementary schools	84.7%		75.8	220^th of 950 public elementary schools	76.8%	75	81.5	70.8	69.4				73.6	75.6	52.3	60.0				62.4	44.4		$18,668

Frequently Asked Questions about Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning

What district is Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning in?

School District No. 1

What schools do graduates of Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning attend?

Students who attend Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning usually go on to attend:

Middle : Rocky Mountain Prep Sunnyside
Middle : Skinner Middle School
High : North High School

How many students attend Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning?

In the 2024-25 school year, 477 students attended Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning.

Is Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning a good school?

Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning ranks 294^th of 946 Colorado elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning?

Students at Centennial A School for Expeditionary Learning are 64% White, 26% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 2% African American, 1% American Indian.

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Latest Colorado data All new data »

2025–26 attendance dataOct 6, 2026

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

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.