Summary:
Zip code 81240 in Penrose, Colorado is served by a single public school: Penrose Elementary School, which educates 281 students in grades PK through 6 as part of the Fremont Re-2 district. Because no middle or high schools exist within the zip code, students in grades 7–12 must attend schools outside the 81240 boundary.
Penrose Elementary stands out as a relative bright spot within its district, even though its overall performance is modest compared to the rest of Colorado. In the 2025–2026 school year, the school outperformed its district in ELA (29.8% vs. 27.3% proficient) and math (23.6% vs. 17.2% proficient), while beating district averages in nearly every grade-level subject test. However, proficiency remains well below state averages, with ELA 14.9 points lower and math 13.7 points lower than Colorado as a whole. The most concerning area is 5th-grade science, where only 13.2% of students met proficiency—below the district's 14.7% and dramatically below the state's 36.1%. Math also shows a notable drop in 4th grade, declining from 31.3% in 3rd grade to just 15.2% before recovering to 26.3% in 5th grade.
The school's state ranking improved from the 19th percentile in 2024–2025 to the 25th percentile in 2025–2026, though it remains rated at 1 star. Fremont Re-2 ranks in the 7th percentile statewide (107 out of 115 districts), making Penrose Elementary a standout within a very low-ranked district. The school benefits from a favorable 13:1 student-teacher ratio, and chronic absenteeism of 28.1% is essentially in line with the state average of 28.4% and better than the district's 31.7%. With roughly 52% of students eligible for free or reduced lunch, the school faces significant socioeconomic challenges, yet it maintains manageable class sizes and avoids absenteeism problems beyond state norms. While academic proficiency remains below statewide benchmarks, Penrose Elementary provides stable, improving performance within its district.
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