Global Leadership Academy

Global Leadership Academy (GLA) is a public high school in the Denver/Thornton, CO area serving about 400 students in grades 9–12 as part of the Mapleton School District No. 1, a district ranked in the 9th percentile statewide. A high-poverty school — roughly 76% of students qualified for free/reduced-price lunch in 2024–25 — GLA ranks in the 5th percentile of Colorado high schools for 2025–26, down from the 15th percentile just a few years earlier.

There are some encouraging signs. GLA's graduation rate has climbed from 62.5% in 2020–21 to 81.4% in 2024–25, above its district's 78.9%, and chronic absenteeism improved from 47.2% to 39.3% in one year. However, academic proficiency remains low and imbalanced: math is a persistent crisis, with just 8% of 10th graders proficient on the PSAT10, and SAT reading/writing proficiency stands at 28% versus 60% statewide. The school also trails key neighbors — Academy High School, a same-district school two miles away with nearly identical demographics, posts an 87.5% graduation rate, a 49% SAT reading/writing score, and a 26% SAT math score, while Westminster High School and Northglenn High School also outperform GLA on most measures.

Subgroup data raises further concerns. GLA ranked last in the state — 0th percentile — for gifted and talented students, and male and low-income students ranked in the 3rd percentile. The student-teacher ratio of 23.9 is among the highest in the area, notably above Academy High's 17.7. Still, GLA is not the lowest-performing school in the region: it beats Thornton High School in reading, has lower dropout and absenteeism rates than several alternative schools, and its science scores showed a promising spike in 2023–24 before falling back. The priorities for improvement are clear: math intervention, stronger support for gifted and male students, and addressing staffing levels.