Summary:
Schools in zip code 80720 serve the small rural community of Akron, Colorado, through two schools in the Akron School District No. R-1: Akron Elementary School (grades PK-8, 301 students) and Akron High School (grades 9-12, 110 students). Together they educate roughly 411 students in a district ranked 74th out of 115 Colorado districts with a 2-star rating. Both schools benefit from low student-teacher ratios — 11.7 at the elementary and 9.9 at the high school — though academic outcomes remain mixed.
Comparing the two schools, Akron High School shows notable strengths: a graduation rate of 88.5% (above the state's 85.6%), chronic absenteeism of just 15.0%, and 10th graders scoring 70% proficient on the PSAT10 reading/writing test, above the state average of 65%. However, math is a consistent weakness — only 19% of 11th graders were proficient on SAT math, and just 13% of 10th graders on PSAT10 math. Akron Elementary School serves a higher share of economically disadvantaged families (53.49% free/reduced lunch vs. 44.55% at the high school) and has a higher chronic absenteeism rate at 21.1%. Its 2025-2026 proficiency rates were 21.5% in ELA and 16.9% in math, well below state averages.
The most concerning finding is the steep decline at Akron Elementary School, where ELA proficiency fell from 35.7% to 21.5% and math from 28.6% to 16.9% between 2024-2025 and 2025-2026. Akron High School's ranking has also slipped from the 50th percentile (2023-2024) to the 37th percentile (2025-2026), largely due to weak math scores. Despite these challenges, both schools keep students engaged with low dropout rates (1.1% elementary, 1.6% high school) and attendance better than the state overall. Small class sizes and strong graduation outcomes provide a solid foundation, but targeted math support and early-grade intervention appear critical for improving achievement.
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