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Samuels Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
647th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 950 Colorado Elementary Schools
Better than 32% of Colorado elementary schools
Summary

Samuels Elementary School is a public elementary school in Denver, Colorado, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 477 students. The school is part of the School District No. 1, which is ranked 76 out of 115 districts in Colorado and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Samuels Elementary School faces significant challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 27.7% to 44.8% over the past few years, well above the state and district averages. Academically, the school consistently underperforms compared to the district and state in CMAS assessments for English Language Arts, Math, and Science. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the school's proficiency rates were 34.4% in ELA, 24% in Math, and 25.6% in Science, compared to the district's 41.9%, 32.9%, and 34% respectively, and the state's 44.8%, 35.9%, and 39%.

When compared to nearby schools, such as Rocky Mountain Prep Creekside and Joe Shoemaker School, Samuels Elementary consistently underperforms in academic assessments and has higher chronic absenteeism rates. The school also performs significantly worse than schools in the neighboring Cherry Creek School District, such as Belleview Elementary and Greenwood Elementary, which consistently rank higher in the state and have stronger academic outcomes.

532
Students ?
18.3
Student/teacher ratio ?
$18,906
Per pupil spending ?
86.5%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 3985 South Vincennes Court
       Denver, CO  80237-1748

(720) 424-4450

District: School District No. 1


Students who attend Samuels Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Hamilton Middle School
High:    Thomas Jefferson High School
Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
54.9%
African American:
21.6%
White:
13.3%
more
 See top rated Colorado elementary schools

 Compare Samuels Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Improving — 21st percentile in 2011 → 32nd in 2025
Strengths
Ranking is trending up — up 11 percentile points since 2011
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Colorado average (28% vs 40% meeting standards)
!High chronic absenteeism (44% vs 28% Colorado)
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school28%
District avg37%
Colorado avg40%
647th of 950
Colorado public elementary schools ?
Bottom 32%▲ up 9 pts since 2015
From bottom 23% (2015) to bottom 32% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
48th of 99Elementary Schools in the School District No. 1
76th of 115School 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202526.8647 of 95031.9%★★☆☆☆
201922.0751 of 96522.2%★☆☆☆☆
201814.8799 of 91712.9%★☆☆☆☆
201726.8658 of 92929.2%★☆☆☆☆
201626.4648 of 91429.1%★☆☆☆☆
201522.7720 of 93823.2%★☆☆☆☆
201430.2698 of 96227.4%★☆☆☆☆
201328.8710 of 95425.6%★☆☆☆☆
201217.5786 of 93515.9%★☆☆☆☆
201122.9743 of 93520.5%★☆☆☆☆
201013.7813 of 92512.1%★☆☆☆☆
200932.3647 of 87225.8%★☆☆☆☆
200829.0642 of 84924.4%★☆☆☆☆
200719.2708 of 85216.9%★☆☆☆☆
200624.4659 of 82920.5%★☆☆☆☆
200526.8636 of 82322.7%★☆☆☆☆
200433.4572 of 80829.2%★☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202515.5579 of 69416.6%★☆☆☆☆
201918.7630 of 75816.9%★☆☆☆☆
201816.1608 of 69011.9%★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202525.2195 of 24721.1%★☆☆☆☆
201916.7252 of 2706.7%☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202547.1167 of 33750.4%★★★☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
202517.6569 of 70018.7%★☆☆☆☆
201916.8650 of 76414.9%★☆☆☆☆
201814.7611 of 69311.8%★☆☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankColorado percentileRating
201942.8340 of 59643.0%★★☆☆☆
201835.4220 of 33734.7%★★☆☆☆
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)
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)50th percentile+19 vs school
White (2019)43rd percentile+21 vs school
Hispanic (2025)21st percentile-11 vs school
Male (2025)19th percentile-13 vs school
Female (2025)17th percentile-15 vs school
By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?
English Language Arts34%-10 vs state
Science26%-13 vs state
Math24%-12 vs state

2.3
3 ratings · 2 written reviews
51
40
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12
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What people are saying
by a parent
Thursday, December 21, 2017

Open Quote Worst school I've ever sent my children too. The staff will make you a 102 promises, only to keep one. If your child is on an IEP or you have a special needs student, expect for them to be placed in a room and given sheets to color everyday while the school collects the tax credit. They treat these children horribly and the Pricipals there clearly get paid to much for what they actually do which is nothing!! Close Quote


by a teacher
Monday, October 24, 2016

Open Quote I taught at Samuels. Every year, I had 30 or more students in my classroom. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Samuels Elementary School

Samuels Elementary School ranks 647th of 950 Colorado elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

In the 2024-25 school year, 532 students attended Samuels Elementary School.

Students at Samuels Elementary School are 55% Hispanic, 22% African American, 13% White, 5% Asian, 4% Two or more races.

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

Middle : Hamilton Middle School
High : Thomas Jefferson High School


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Latest Colorado data All new data »
2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026
2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 13, 2026
2024–25 attendance dataAug 27, 2025
2024–25 CMAS, PSAT10, PSAT9 & SAT test scoresAug 21, 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.





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