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Poudre High School

Q: Is Poudre High School a good school?

Poudre High School ranks 80 th of 340 Colorado high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

80^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 340 Colorado High Schools

Better than 76% of Colorado high schools

Summary

Poudre High School is a large comprehensive high school in Fort Collins, Colorado, serving 1,409 students in grades 9–12 as part of the highly rated Poudre School District R-1. The school earned 4 stars in 2025–2026, ranking 77th out of 338 Colorado high schools (77th percentile). Academically, Poudre is a solid but not top-tier school within a strong district. Reading and writing scores are close to district averages and well above state averages, while math and science are below district averages but still above state averages. Science proficiency in particular jumped from 22.8% in 2022–2023 to 42.4% in 2025–2026, and SAT math improved from 33% to 42%.

However, Poudre's most distinctive features are not test scores—they are its exceptionally high chronic absenteeism rate and below-average graduation rate. In 2024–2025, 64.0% of students were chronically absent, more than double the district rate of 30.7% and by far the highest among the district's traditional high schools. The graduation rate was 79.3%, down sharply from 85.6% the prior year, compared to the district's 89.0% and the state's 85.6%. Nearby schools far outperform Poudre on graduation: Fossil Ridge High School (97.1%), Timnath Middle-High School (95.3%), Fort Collins High School (91.1%), and Rocky Mountain High School (90.6%).

Poudre serves a higher share of economically disadvantaged students (45.3% free/reduced-price lunch) than nearby schools like Fossil Ridge (16.4%) and Timnath (19.4%), which provides helpful context. However, Fort Collins High School has a similar economic profile (37.4%) and still achieves a 91.1% graduation rate and 46.8% chronic absenteeism, suggesting Poudre's challenges are school-specific. Notably, Poudre's test scores remain strong—even compared to Wellington Middle-High School, Poudre posts higher SAT reading (72% vs 63%) and math (42% vs 19%), yet Wellington graduates 92.8% of its students. The bottom line: Poudre is doing well academically for students who attend regularly, but addressing chronic absenteeism and improving graduation rates will be critical to its long-term success.

1,409

Students ?

16.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$20,203

Per pupil spending ?

45.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

201 Impala Drive
Fort Collins, CO 80521-2216

(970) 488-6000

District: Poudre School District R-1

Feeder schools for Poudre High School:

Elementary:	Cache La Poudre Elementary School
	Dunn Elementary School
	Irish Elementary School
	Putnam Elementary School
	More...
	Tavelli Elementary School
Middle:	Cache La Poudre Middle School
	Lincoln Middle School

Racial breakdown:

White:

62.7%

Hispanic:

30.4%

Two or more races:

3.8%

See top rated Colorado high schools

Compare Poudre High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 42nd percentile in 2016 → 76th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Colorado average (64% vs 48% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 24% of Colorado high schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 34 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Graduation rate below the Colorado average (79% vs 86%)

!High chronic absenteeism (64% vs 28% Colorado)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school64%

District avg68%

Colorado avg48%

80^th of 340

Colorado public high schools ?

Top 24%▲ up 34 pts since 2016

From bottom 42% (2016) to top 24% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 7High Schools in the Poudre School District R-1

12^th of 114Poudre School District R-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	77.6	80 of 340	76.5%	★★★★☆
2025	74.3	88 of 328	73.2%	★★★★☆
2024	78.2	69 of 349	80.2%	★★★★☆
2023	63.3	120 of 349	65.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.1	107 of 221	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	45.0	114 of 210	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	70.2	101 of 411	75.4%	★★★★☆
2018	69.5	100 of 388	74.2%	★★★★☆
2017	38.7	126 of 256	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2016	33.7	147 of 255	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2015	55.6	90 of 292	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2014	58.0	159 of 369	56.9%	★★★☆☆
2013	61.7	144 of 349	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2012	68.5	112 of 334	66.5%	★★★☆☆
2011	69.4	108 of 337	68.0%	★★★☆☆
2010	68.1	111 of 327	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2009	80.7	49 of 310	84.2%	★★★★☆
2008	84.3	38 of 301	87.4%	★★★★☆
2007	83.4	40 of 298	86.6%	★★★★☆
2006	82.1	40 of 286	86.0%	★★★★☆
2005	88.0	25 of 280	91.1%	★★★★★
2004	85.3	37 of 279	86.7%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	77.7	56 of 246	77.2%	★★★★☆
2025	72.8	65 of 247	73.7%	★★★★☆
2024	75.4	57 of 257	77.8%	★★★★☆
2023	65.2	84 of 254	66.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	57.1	105 of 257	59.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	59.8	93 of 239	61.1%	★★★☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	67.8	47 of 143	67.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	71.7	28 of 136	79.4%	★★★★☆
2023	66.0	43 of 135	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	55.7	56 of 108	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	70.3	25 of 118	78.8%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	51.5	86 of 198	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2025	48.3	84 of 187	55.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	52.0	79 of 199	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	39.8	110 of 198	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.7	125 of 205	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2021	34.1	108 of 181	40.3%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	60.4	70 of 209	66.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	70.6	44 of 194	77.3%	★★★★☆
2024	67.5	56 of 211	73.5%	★★★★☆
2023	56.3	76 of 200	62.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	61.5	66 of 203	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	43.5	103 of 188	45.2%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	72.1	69 of 244	71.7%	★★★★☆
2025	70.0	74 of 246	69.9%	★★★★☆
2024	75.5	57 of 256	77.7%	★★★★☆
2023	55.7	107 of 252	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	69.9	76 of 253	70.0%	★★★★☆
2021	58.7	94 of 240	60.8%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2023	68.2	18 of 62	71.0%	★★★★☆
2022	57.2	25 of 56	55.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	93.9	1 of 48	97.9%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2026	70.1	61 of 221	72.4%	★★★★☆
2025	66.9	68 of 209	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	71.4	65 of 229	71.6%	★★★★☆
2023	49.1	117 of 234	50.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	53.6	103 of 228	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	49.9	112 of 225	50.2%	★★★☆☆

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)

Female (2026)77th percentile~ school

White (2026)72nd percentile-4 vs school

Male (2026)72nd percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2023)71st percentile+5 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)67th percentile-9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)67th percentile-10 vs school

Hispanic (2026)57th percentile-20 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2025-2026) ?

Reading and Writing72%+12 vs state

Science42%+18 vs state

Mathematics42%+10 vs state

4.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a student
Wednesday, October 28, 2015

LOTS of different programs and clubs to join, very accepting community. We're often seen as the "hicks" of the district but there's not that many stereotypical hicks at the school. Teachers are usually really nice and understanding. Theater program is one of the best in the state (tech for the plays are really fun and you should definitely join though). Music department is amazing, pretty underfunded, but we do pretty well with what we have. Definitely a lot of school spirit. I am who I am because of who We are. Close Quote

Schools Near Poudre High 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)				PSAT10 Reading and Writing (2026)	PSAT10 Mathematics (2026)	PSAT9 Reading and Writing (2026)	PSAT9 Mathematics (2026)	SAT Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	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/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	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	PSAT10 Reading and Writing 10th Grade	PSAT10 Mathematics 10th Grade	PSAT9 Reading and Writing 9th Grade	PSAT9 Mathematics 9th Grade	SAT Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th 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 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 8th Grade	CMAS Science 11th Grade	Total
Poudre High School	Public	9-12	201 Impala Drive	Fort Collins	80521	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-6000	1,409	86	16.4	45.3%	883 (62.7%)	19 (1.3%)	429 (30.4%)	16 (1.1%)	5 (0.4%)	4 (0.3%)	53 (3.8%)	77.6	80^th of 340 public high schools	76.5%		74.3	88^th of 328 public high schools	73.2%	8	81.3	53.7	80.8	57.9	71.5	41.7										42.4	$20,203
Poudre Community Academy	Public	6-12	2540 Laporte Avenue	Fort Collins	80521	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 490-3295	212	15	14.0	76.4%	85 (40.1%)	4 (1.9%)	103 (48.6%)	5 (2.4%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (6.6%)								(n/a)																	$22,903
Centennial High School	Public	9-12	330 East Laurel Street	Fort Collins	80524	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-4940	118	12	9.6	75.4%	61 (51.7%)	1 (0.8%)	49 (41.5%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (5.1%)								(n/a)					22.7	378.0											$30,893
Compass Community Collaborative School	Public, Charter	6-12	2105 South College Avenue	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	Yes	No	No	No	(970) 372-4242	179	14	13.0	17.3%	142 (79.3%)	1 (0.6%)	26 (14.5%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.9%)	92.5	16^th of 340 public high schools	95.3%		90	26^th of 328 public high schools	92.1%	10	546.0	508.0	94.1	64.7			71.4	78.3	78.3	76.1	52.4	56.5	76.9	62.9	48.0		$11,882
Rocky Mountain High School	Public	9-12	1300 West Swallow Road	Fort Collins	80526	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-7023	2,044	104	19.5	34.4%	1,522 (74.5%)	36 (1.8%)	378 (18.5%)	15 (0.7%)	9 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	84 (4.1%)	81.8	62^nd of 340 public high schools	81.8%		80.9	55^th of 328 public high schools	83.2%	7	83.3	61.1	80.3	56.6	76.6	44.9										51.1	$17,543
Fort Collins High School	Public	9-12	3400 Lambkin Way	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-8021	1,836	99	18.6	37.4%	1,212 (66.0%)	27 (1.5%)	466 (25.4%)	44 (2.4%)	14 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (3.9%)	79.7	72^nd of 340 public high schools	78.8%		80.3	61^st of 328 public high schools	81.4%	11	80.7	52.2	80.8	56.6	78.8	44.2										52.8	$18,735
Colorado Early Colleges Fort Collins	Public, Charter	6-12	4424 Innovation Drive	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	No	No	No	(970) 377-0044	971	40	24.5	33.5%	714 (73.5%)	20 (2.1%)	164 (16.9%)	29 (3.0%)	3 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	39 (4.0%)	81.9	59^th of 340 public high schools	82.6%		84.2	45^th of 328 public high schools	86.3%	14	86.1	56.5	83.3	51.0	82.4	45.8	51.9	48.1	42.9	47.3	32.7	34.6	35.7	34.5	42.9	47.1	$12,307
Timnath Middle-High School	Public	6-12	4700 East Prospect Road	Timnath	80535	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(970) 419-3400	1,456	79	18.3	19.4%	1,093 (75.1%)	21 (1.4%)	248 (17.0%)	34 (2.3%)	6 (0.4%)	4 (0.3%)	50 (3.4%)	84.2	46^th of 340 public high schools	86.5%					(n/a)	88.3	60.6	84.7	55.3	78.5	46.2	52.9	58.6	49.7	53.7	57.2	42.4	50.0	49.8	43.4	58.3	$18,518
Fossil Ridge High School	Public	9-12	5400 Ziegler Road	Fort Collins	80528	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-6260	1,846	96	19.2	16.4%	1,404 (76.1%)	19 (1.0%)	216 (11.7%)	116 (6.3%)	2 (0.1%)	2 (0.1%)	85 (4.6%)	91.5	22^nd of 340 public high schools	93.5%		92.8	16^th of 328 public high schools	95.1%	6	88.0	59.7	91.1	73.1	86.1	59.8										69.6	$17,886
Colorado Early Colleges Windsor	Public, Charter	5-12	7640 Westgate Dr	Windsor	80528	Larimer County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	No	No	No	(970) 657-2860	196	15	13.1	26.0%	153 (78.1%)	1 (0.5%)	32 (16.3%)	4 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (3.1%)								(n/a)									30.4	27.3			34.8	38.6	36.4		$21,881

Frequently Asked Questions about Poudre High School

What district is Poudre High School in?

Poudre School District R-1

Is Poudre High School a good school?

Poudre High School ranks 80^th of 340 Colorado high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Poudre High School?

Students at Poudre High School are 63% White, 30% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 1% African American, 1% Asian.

What schools feed into Poudre High School?

Poudre High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Cache La Poudre Elementary School
Elementary : Dunn Elementary School
Elementary : Irish Elementary School
Elementary : Putnam Elementary School
Elementary : Tavelli Elementary School
Middle : Cache La Poudre Middle School
Middle : Lincoln Middle School

How many students attend Poudre High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,409 students attended Poudre High School.

Rate Poudre High School!

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Latest Colorado data All new data »

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

2024–25 attendance dataAug 27, 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.