Summary:
ZIP code 81647 in New Castle, Colorado is served by four public schools in the Garfield School District No. Re-2, enrolling 1,608 students total: Coal Ridge High School (grades 9–12), Riverside School (grades 6–8), and two elementary schools, Kathryn Senor Elementary School and Elk Creek Elementary (both PK–5). All four schools serve similar populations, with free/reduced lunch eligibility ranging from 40% to 46%, so differences in performance are not driven by poverty gaps. The district ranks 92nd of 115 Colorado districts, but individual schools vary significantly within that rating.
Coal Ridge High School is the strongest performer on postsecondary measures, with a 91.5% graduation rate and SAT proficiency above state averages in both Reading/Writing (62%) and math (36%). It has climbed to the 50th percentile statewide with a 3-star rating. Riverside School stands out for attendance and momentum: chronic absenteeism is just 7.3%, less than one-third the statewide rate, and all-grades math proficiency jumped 7.6 points in a year. Seventh graders posted 54% proficiency in ELA, above both district and state averages. Riverside now ranks at the 53rd percentile, up from 42nd.
The elementary schools are the weakest link. Kathryn Senor Elementary School ranks in the 32nd percentile, and Elk Creek Elementary sits at just the 19th percentile with a 1-star rating. Elk Creek's ELA proficiency is only 23.4% versus 44.7% statewide, though its math (26.2%) slightly exceeds the district's 23.9%. Kathryn Senor is a bright spot in math at 33.9%, near the state average, but ELA lags badly. Science proficiency is consistently low and declining across all schools. The overall picture: strong secondary schools and an excellent attendance culture, but elementary literacy and science need significant attention.
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