Rye High School

Rye High School is a small public high school in Rye, Colorado, serving 250 students in grades 9–12 as part of Pueblo County School District 70. The school holds a 3-star rating and ranks in the 54th percentile of Colorado high schools. Since no other schools are within 20 miles of Rye, student outcomes are best understood in comparison to district and statewide averages rather than nearby schools.

Rye’s strongest academic area is science, with 11th-grade proficiency consistently well above district and state rates — 40.5% in 2025–2026 versus 27.6% for the district and 24.8% statewide. Reading and writing performance on the SAT is also a clear strength, reaching 64% proficient in 2025–2026, above both the district (58%) and state (60%). Graduation rates are excellent, including 95.4% in 2023–2024 compared to 84.2% statewide. Notably, economically disadvantaged students, who make up about 41% of the student body, perform in the 76th percentile statewide, indicating the school is effectively supporting a significant portion of its students.

The most pressing concern is chronic absenteeism: 43.7% of students were chronically absent in 2024–2025, far above the 28.4% state average, even though academic results remain strong. This mismatch suggests that students who attend regularly perform well, but a large share of the student body is missing significant school time, which could eventually impact graduation and achievement. Math is the clearest academic weakness, with proficiency in most grades and assessments falling below state averages. Given the small enrollment, year-to-year swings in test scores and rankings can be dramatic, so families should interpret single-year changes cautiously.