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Shepardson Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

78^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 950 Colorado Elementary Schools

Better than 92% of Colorado elementary schools

Summary

Shepardson Elementary School is a public elementary school in Fort Collins, Colorado, serving 424 students in grades PK-5. As part of the highly-ranked Poudre School District R-1, Shepardson consistently performs among the top 15% of Colorado elementary schools, with impressive proficiency rates that exceed district and state averages across all grades and subjects.

Shepardson's academic excellence is particularly evident in its 4th grade English Language Arts proficiency rate of 81.4%, which is notably higher than the district (57.6%) and state (42%) averages. The school also stands out for its 5th grade Science proficiency rate of 65.2%, compared to 56.7% for the district and 39% for the state. However, the school has experienced fluctuations in chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 12.7% to 34.2% in recent years, which is an area of concern.

While Shepardson's overall academic performance is impressive, the data also reveals disparities in student group performance, with male students consistently outperforming their female counterparts. Additionally, the school is serving a growing population of economically disadvantaged students, with the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch increasing from 18.79% in 2021-2022 to 29.48% in 2023-2024. These findings suggest the need for targeted interventions and support to ensure equitable outcomes for all students at Shepardson Elementary School.

414

Students ?

13.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,885

Per pupil spending ?

24.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1501 Springwood Drive
Fort Collins, CO 80525-2927

(970) 488-4525

District: Poudre School District R-1

Students who attend Shepardson Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Fort Collins High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

81.9%

Hispanic:

9.4%

Two or more races:

5.3%

See top rated Colorado elementary schools

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At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 70th percentile in 2015 → 92nd in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Colorado average (68% vs 40% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 8% of Colorado elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 22 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school68%

District avg56%

Colorado avg40%

78^th of 950

Colorado public elementary schools ?

Top 8%▲ up 22 pts since 2015

From top 30% (2015) to top 8% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Colorado Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 30Elementary Schools in the Poudre School District R-1

14^th of 115Poudre 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
2025	89.5	78 of 950	91.8%	★★★★★
2024	85.0	122 of 943	87.1%	★★★★☆
2023	85.8	109 of 933	88.3%	★★★★☆
2022	88.1	86 of 921	90.7%	★★★★★
2021	72.3	214 of 710	69.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	77.0	190 of 965	80.3%	★★★★☆
2018	81.4	154 of 917	83.2%	★★★★☆
2017	82.1	141 of 929	84.8%	★★★★☆
2016	69.8	248 of 914	72.9%	★★★★☆
2015	65.9	281 of 938	70.0%	★★★★☆
2014	61.8	370 of 962	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2013	70.2	281 of 954	70.5%	★★★★☆
2012	70.5	279 of 935	70.2%	★★★★☆
2011	72.4	253 of 935	72.9%	★★★★☆
2010	67.9	310 of 925	66.5%	★★★☆☆
2009	73.9	221 of 872	74.7%	★★★★☆
2008	74.2	207 of 849	75.6%	★★★★☆
2007	78.0	162 of 852	81.0%	★★★★☆
2006	74.9	192 of 829	76.8%	★★★★☆
2005	75.2	208 of 823	74.7%	★★★★☆
2004	85.6	93 of 808	88.5%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	80.8	104 of 694	85.0%	★★★★☆
2024	73.7	151 of 684	77.9%	★★★★☆
2023	73.0	155 of 642	75.9%	★★★★☆
2022	79.3	98 of 595	83.5%	★★★★☆
2021	61.3	161 of 351	54.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	70.0	196 of 758	74.1%	★★★★☆
2018	77.7	120 of 690	82.6%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	86.6	67 of 700	90.4%	★★★★★
2024	81.9	99 of 683	85.5%	★★★★☆
2023	82.9	92 of 649	85.8%	★★★★☆
2022	85.5	67 of 594	88.7%	★★★★☆
2021	61.5	165 of 352	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	74.8	165 of 764	78.4%	★★★★☆
2018	73.8	155 of 693	77.6%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2025	76.9	95 of 551	82.8%	★★★★☆
2024	68.5	149 of 539	72.4%	★★★★☆
2022	73.0	107 of 454	76.4%	★★★★☆
2019	87.8	34 of 596	94.3%	★★★★★

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)

Male (2025)90th percentile~ school

Female (2025)85th percentile-7 vs school

White (2025)83rd percentile-9 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts74%+29 vs state

Science65%+26 vs state

Math63%+27 vs state

4.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★0

3★1

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Common Core Warning at this elementary. They look poised to fully enact Common Core standards. Close Quote

by a parent
Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Shepardson is a wonderful school with great teachers and a wonderful new principle. The STEM curriculum is very appropriate for today's education and they also boast a full time School Counselor, Angela Mitchell, that the kids LOVE. She spends time in the classroom working on life skills, such as conflict resolution, and positive behavior support. Keep up the great work! Close Quote

Schools Near Shepardson Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CMAS English Language Arts (2025)						CMAS Math (2025)					CMAS Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	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 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 All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	Total
Shepardson Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1501 Springwood Drive	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-4525	414	30	13.9	24.2%	339 (81.9%)	3 (0.7%)	39 (9.4%)	11 (2.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (5.3%)	89.5	78^th of 950 public elementary schools	91.8%		85	122^nd of 943 public elementary schools	87.1%	44	62.9	81.4	76.8			73.7	67.7	59.3	62.3		63.2	65.2	$17,885
Kruse Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4400 McMurry Avenue	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-5625	406	29	14.2	38.9%	266 (65.5%)	5 (1.2%)	101 (24.9%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (7.1%)	88.5	90^th of 950 public elementary schools	90.5%		88.2	93^rd of 943 public elementary schools	90.1%	3	66.0	63.1	74.6			68.1	63.0	60.6	75.8		66.7	61.2	$15,909
Linton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4100 Caribou Drive	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 488-5850	307	26	11.6	67.4%	124 (40.4%)	1 (0.3%)	161 (52.4%)	1 (0.3%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (5.2%)	22.4	702^nd of 950 public elementary schools	26.1%		28.2	634^th of 943 public elementary schools	32.8%	68	24.5	23.3	31.8			26.4	20.8	21.7	28.6		23.4	32.6	$19,782
O'Dea Elementary School	Public	K-5	312 Princeton Road	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-4450	398	34	11.7	45.2%	273 (68.6%)	7 (1.8%)	77 (19.3%)	9 (2.3%)	3 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.3%)	84.2	128^th of 950 public elementary schools	86.5%		82.9	143^rd of 943 public elementary schools	84.8%	15	51.4	70.0	75.0			65.2	55.7	65.6	63.8		61.5	61.8	$18,014
Riffenburgh Elementary School	Public	K-5	1320 East Stuart Street	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-7935	443	30	14.7	34.5%	316 (71.3%)	10 (2.3%)	80 (18.1%)	8 (1.8%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	23 (5.2%)	77.6	205^th of 950 public elementary schools	78.4%		80.6	164^th of 943 public elementary schools	82.6%	41	68.2	71.4	62.5			66.9	65.9	50.8	51.2		56.4	40.5	$16,208
Academy of Arts and Knowledge Elementary	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	4800 Wheaton Dr	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	State Charter School Institute	Yes	No	No	Yes	(970) 226-2800	240	18	13.7	47.5%	159 (66.3%)	6 (2.5%)	51 (21.3%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (9.6%)	38.4	541^st of 950 public elementary schools	43.1%		43.1	494^th of 943 public elementary schools	47.6%	47	38.1	35.1	47.4			38.8	31.0	27.0	36.8		30.6	42.1	$10,639
Beattie Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3000 Meadowlark Avenue	Fort Collins	80526	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-4225	302	20	15.4	50.3%	186 (61.6%)	7 (2.3%)	73 (24.2%)	10 (3.3%)	5 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (7.0%)	67.4	296^th of 950 public elementary schools	68.8%		69.2	275^th of 943 public elementary schools	70.8%	21	60.5	42.9	58.3			53.7	46.5	42.9	48.6		45.9	59.5	$17,033
Traut Core Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2515 Timberwood Drive	Fort Collins	80528	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-7500	484	27	17.7	17.4%	308 (63.6%)	3 (0.6%)	50 (10.3%)	90 (18.6%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	30 (6.2%)	95.1	29^th of 950 public elementary schools	96.9%		96.6	18^th of 943 public elementary schools	98.1%	11	71.6	73.2	91.5			78.7	70.3	66.2	83.1		73.1	81.4	$14,946
Mountain Sage Community School	Public, Charter	K-8	2310 East Prospect Road Suite	Fort Collins	80525	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	Yes	No	No	No	(970) 568-5456	265	17	15.9	26.0%	216 (81.5%)	1 (0.4%)	15 (5.7%)	8 (3.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (9.1%)	58	380^th of 950 public elementary schools	60.0%		45.9	481^st of 943 public elementary schools	49.0%	101	54.8		70.0	60.0	46.2	57.1	40.5	23.8	45.0	16.7	33.5	57.1	$12,541
Lopez Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	637 Wabash Street	Fort Collins	80526	Larimer County	Poudre School District R-1	No	No	No	No	(970) 488-8800	361	24	15.1	48.8%	245 (67.9%)	12 (3.3%)	77 (21.3%)	6 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.8%)	62.2	344^th of 950 public elementary schools	63.8%		67.5	291^st of 943 public elementary schools	69.1%	53	51.8	44.2	56.1			51.3	60.0	25.6	46.4		45.5	47.3	$16,061

Frequently Asked Questions about Shepardson Elementary School

Is Shepardson Elementary School a good school?

Yes. Shepardson Elementary School ranks in the top 8.2% of Colorado elementary schools.

How many students attend Shepardson Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 414 students attended Shepardson Elementary School.

What district is Shepardson Elementary School in?

Poudre School District R-1

What schools do graduates of Shepardson Elementary School attend?

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

High : Fort Collins High School

What is the racial makeup of Shepardson Elementary School?

Students at Shepardson Elementary School are 82% White, 9% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

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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.