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Best Elementary Schools in Zip Code 80205

At a glance

Schools

2,330

Students

5-star school

Top rankedPolaris Elementary School1^st of 946 Colorado elementary schools

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Biggest riser

University Prep - Steele St. up 49 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

University Prep - Steele St. 11.4 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

2★

1★

0★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

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Summary:

Zip code 80205 in Denver, Colorado is home to 9 elementary schools serving grades PK/K–5 (with some variations like ECE-8 and K–6), collectively enrolling 2,482 students in School District No. 1. The area is economically mixed but predominantly low-income, with a weighted free/reduced lunch rate of about 65% and six of the nine schools above 80% poverty. Test scores range from the best in the state to among the lowest, making this a strikingly uneven educational landscape.

At the top, Polaris Elementary School is a statewide superstar: ranked #1 in Colorado for three straight years, with 94.9% ELA and 91.5% math proficiency, plus a very low 6.9% chronic absenteeism rate. French American School of Denver is a strong second option, ranking in the 72nd percentile with solid 5th-grade scores and low absenteeism (12.4%). Meanwhile, most other schools struggle significantly. University Prep - Steele St. stands out for its exceptional 3.6% chronic absenteeism rate despite 89.2% poverty, though its test scores (28.4% ELA, 34.7% math) remain below state averages. At the bottom, Cole Arts and Science Academy (7.6% ELA, 6.8% math) and Whittier Ece-8 School (21.3% ELA, 10.2% math) face severe achievement challenges, while International Academy of Denver at Harrington has the highest chronic absenteeism at 60.4%.

The key takeaway for parents is that school choice matters enormously in this zip code. Columbine Elementary School offers a middle-ground option (43.4% ELA, 30.6% math, 27.5% absenteeism), while Wyatt Academy and University Prep - Arapahoe St. sit in the bottom half. Chronic absenteeism is the biggest red flag: five of the nine schools have rates above 50%, nearly double the state average of 28.4%. Math is a particular weakness across most schools. One bright spot is that University Prep - Steele St. proves high poverty doesn't have to mean high absenteeism, and French American School of Denver shows strong growth from 3rd to 5th grade. Still, for most families, Polaris is the clear standout, while the other schools require careful consideration of attendance, math support, and grade-level needs.

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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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CMAS English Language Arts (2026)							CMAS Math (2026)							CMAS Science (2026)		Vaccination (2025-26)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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	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 7th 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 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	CMAS Science 8th Grade	Vaccination: Kindergartners fully immunized against measles (MMR)	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Total
Columbine Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2540 East 29th Ave	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-8510	346	25	14.0	42.2%	157 (45.4%)	62 (17.9%)	85 (24.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.0%)	33 (9.5%)	37.6	545^th of 946 public elementary schools	42.4%		48.2	459^th of 950 public elementary schools	51.7%	86	40.0	51.1	37.8				43.4	40.0	33.3	16.7				30.6	22.2		88.1%	0%	$19,233
Whittier Ece-8 School	Public	PK, KG-8	2480 Downing Street	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 424-3040	242	17	14.2	88.4%	13 (5.4%)	122 (50.4%)	72 (29.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.2%)	3 (1.2%)	29 (12.0%)	9.9	889^th of 946 public elementary schools	6.0%		8.3	915^th of 950 public elementary schools	3.7%	26	19.2	13.0	19.0	13.0	38.9	31.3	21.3	710.0	714.0	19.0	708.0	15.8	710.0	10.2	710.0	722.0	95%	0%	$21,737
University Prep - Steele St.	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	3230 East 38th Avenue	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 329-8412	334	29	11.4	89.2%	15 (4.5%)	94 (28.1%)	206 (61.7%)	2 (0.6%)	2 (0.6%)	5 (1.5%)	10 (3.0%)	28	645^th of 946 public elementary schools	31.8%		23.2	694^th of 950 public elementary schools	26.9%	49	31.6	31.1	21.6				28.4	38.6	42.6	21.2				34.7	11.5		70.7%	0%	$18,565
Wyatt Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	3620 Franklin Street	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 292-5515	240	18	13.6	81.3%	22 (9.2%)	43 (17.9%)	166 (69.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	7 (2.9%)	20.1	741^st of 946 public elementary schools	21.7%		21.8	714^th of 950 public elementary schools	24.8%	27	12.1	30.6	31.1				25.4	27.3	11.1	33.3				24.6	714.0		53.7%	4.9%	$15,338
Polaris Elementary School	Public	1-5	410 Park Avenue West	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(720) 424-7860	350	18	19.6	17.4%	198 (56.6%)	15 (4.3%)	49 (14.0%)	34 (9.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (15.4%)	99.4	1^st of 946 public elementary schools	99.9%		99.3	1^st of 950 public elementary schools	99.9%		92.4	92.5	100.0				94.9	89.9	88.8	96.1				91.5	100.0				$16,759
Cole Arts and Science Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	1350 E 33rd Ave	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(720) 423-9120	275	21	13.0	83.6%	29 (10.5%)	41 (14.9%)	189 (68.7%)	3 (1.1%)	2 (0.7%)	2 (0.7%)	9 (3.3%)								(n/a)	695.0	696.0	715.0				7.6	12.9	705.0	707.0				6.8	694.0		84.2%	0%	$23,197
University Prep - Arapahoe St.	Public, Charter	K-5	2409 Arapahoe Street	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	Yes	(303) 292-0463	313	27	11.7	89.8%	15 (4.8%)	155 (49.5%)	124 (39.6%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	3 (1.0%)	12 (3.8%)	17.5	782^nd of 946 public elementary schools	17.3%		13.8	822^nd of 950 public elementary schools	13.5%	40	19.0	18.6	16.2				18.1	23.8	33.9	18.9				26.8	696.0		76.6%	6.4%	$18,826
French American School of Denver	Public, Charter	K-5	2350 N. Gaylord Street	Denver	80205	Denver County	School District No. 1	Yes	No	No	No	(720) 506-4589	230	18	12.7	20.0%	163 (70.9%)	19 (8.3%)	22 (9.6%)	4 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (9.6%)	70.1	265^th of 946 public elementary schools	72.0%		81.4	159^th of 950 public elementary schools	83.3%	106	25.0	71.8	83.3				57.3	35.3	59.0	78.9				54.3	78.9		94.5%	3.6%	$11,986

Cities Near Zip Code 80205

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Denver	0.08 mi	226	138^th
Commerce City	4.22 mi	25	178^th
Edgewater	4.55 mi	3	201^st
Arvada	5.03 mi	29	80^th
Aurora	5.22 mi	108	156^th

See the top CO Colorado cities

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.