Jefferson County Public Schools (Colorado)
Encyclopedia
Jefferson County School District R-1 (aka Jefferson County Public Schools or Jeffco Public Schools) is a school district
in Jefferson County
, Colorado
. It is the largest school district in Colorado and was the 32nd largest school district in the United States in 2001-2002. Jeffco Public Schools serves more than 84,000 students in 148 schools, including eight option schools and eleven charter schools. It has its headquarters, the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center, in West Pleasant View
, an unincorporated area
in the county, near Golden
.
2005-06 spending per pupil: $5,736
Graduation rate as of 2003-2004: 76.3%
High school drop-out rate as of 2003-2004: 4.5%
opened in Golden on January 9, 1860. It stood at around today's 1304 Washington Avenue and was a rented log cabin, with school taught by Thomas Daughterty, with 18 students, financed through tuition and subscription. Its second term was taught by Miss M.F. Manly. When Jefferson County
was organized by the Territorial government in 1861, the capability of organizing public schools became reality, and George West became the first superintendent of Jefferson County schools. After a mill levy was created in 1862, the first two school districts, Golden and Vasquez (roughly today's Wheat Ridge/Arvada area), were organized in 1863. That September the first public school in the county opened in Golden.
for $2,700 for use as the Territorial Executive Building. Its replacement, the first completed public school building in Jefferson County, still stands today at 1420 Washington Avenue in Golden. After the completion of its successor at today's 1314 Cheyenne Street in 1873, later known as the South School, Jefferson County's first senior high school, Golden High School
, was organized. The first public school graduations in Jefferson County were held in the 1880s.
By 1894 Jefferson County school enrollment was around 1,500 students, with 54 high school students. By 1939 Jeffco had blossomed to 3,883 students with 1,426 high schoolers. In the early 20th century, however, population shifts and other factors began to spur consolidation. The Lorraine School District of Jefferson County merged with the Mandalay School District of Boulder County (Broomfield) in 1917. In 1920 the Montana, Lakeview, Midway and Mt. Carbon districts merged to become Bear Creek District C-1. In 1923 several mountain districts merged into Evergreen District C-2, while in 1945 Washington Heights and Bancroft merged to form School District 52. However, some school districts went by the wayside including South Platte in 1944, Pleasant Park in 1946, and Pine Grove. By 1950 only 39 of the 54 individually organized school districts remained.
Today the next wave of school buildings is being created, as Jefferson County schools move forward into the 21st century. However, a good collection of schools from throughout Jeffco's educational history remain. These include Golden's 1866 school and 1924 High School; Stober Elementary; the Arvada School; Arvada High School; Denver View School; Soda Creek School; Buffalo Creek School; Pine Grove School; Pine & Estabrook School; Conifer Junction School; Coal Creek School; Columbine School (Coal Creek); Sampson School; Lamb School; Daniels School; Edgewater Elementary School; Medlen School; Buffalo Park School; Evergreen School; Guy Hill School; Belcher Hill School; Robinson Hill School; Idledale School; Kittredge School; Lakewood Schools campus; Washington Heights School; Mt. Carbon School; Bancroft School; Morrison School; Rockland School; Mountain View School; Mountain View Elementary School; Fruitdale School; Pleasant Park School; Elk Creek School; Hodgson School; Mandalay School, Ralston School, Leyden School, and possibly more. They serve many uses from private homes to museums, and several are designated Jefferson County, Colorado and National Historic Register landmarks.
Through Jeffco schools history there have been several tragic events which have not been forgotten. In 1887 the original Lamb School, which had just been built the year before, burned down and had to be replaced. In 1905 Golden's South School, including Golden High School, was saved from explosion by janitor Oscar Nolin when its overheating boiler was minutes away from claiming possibly over 100 lives. In 1916 the original Fruitdale School burned as its students marched to safety. In 1919 an attempt to burn down the South School was made by a parent frantic to keep the school from reopening in the wake of the Great Flu Epidemic, but the fire smothered itself out. In 1938 the recently built Buffalo Creek School burned while school was in session from an overheated furnace, and teacher Wilma Barnes successfully got all 15 students to safety. Best known is the Columbine High School massacre
in 1999, when two students killed 12 students and a teacher. However, that teacher Dave Sanders proved another hero, having helped many students to safety before losing his own life. Recently Bear Creek High School has caught fire 3 times. On February 23, 2010, Two people were shot but not killed at Deer Creek Middle School. The shooting ended when a math teacher tackled the perpetrator, Bruco Eastwood.
s for managing stormwater and contributing to the health of local watersheds. The wetland project at Oberon Middle School has been lauded by the National Resources Defense Council for setting "an example for local governments seeking new ways to manage stormwater on municipal grounds with some value added."
.
Develyn Jr\Sr High School (1998)
Future High School #18 (http://www.jeffcopublicschools.org/business/facil_plan_design_const/facilities_report/2008_pdf/08_report%20109.pdf)
, which provides individualized education for children ages 3-14.
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
in Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Colorado
Jefferson County , whose slogan is the "Gateway to the Rocky Mountains", is the fourth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. Located along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, Jefferson County is adjacent to the west side of the state capital, Denver....
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. It is the largest school district in Colorado and was the 32nd largest school district in the United States in 2001-2002. Jeffco Public Schools serves more than 84,000 students in 148 schools, including eight option schools and eleven charter schools. It has its headquarters, the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center, in West Pleasant View
West Pleasant View, Colorado
West Pleasant View is a census-designated place in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 3,932 at the 2000 census.-Geography:West Pleasant View is located at ....
, an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in the county, near Golden
Golden, Colorado
The City of Golden is a home rule municipality that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the edge of the foothills of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Founded during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush on 16 June 1859, the mining camp was...
.
Demographics
- American Indian 1.1%
- Asian 3.6%
- Black 1.9%
- Hispanic 16.4%
- White 76.9%
2005-06 spending per pupil: $5,736
Graduation rate as of 2003-2004: 76.3%
High school drop-out rate as of 2003-2004: 4.5%
History
Beginnings
The first school in Jefferson County and the second school in ColoradoColorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
opened in Golden on January 9, 1860. It stood at around today's 1304 Washington Avenue and was a rented log cabin, with school taught by Thomas Daughterty, with 18 students, financed through tuition and subscription. Its second term was taught by Miss M.F. Manly. When Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Colorado
Jefferson County , whose slogan is the "Gateway to the Rocky Mountains", is the fourth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. Located along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, Jefferson County is adjacent to the west side of the state capital, Denver....
was organized by the Territorial government in 1861, the capability of organizing public schools became reality, and George West became the first superintendent of Jefferson County schools. After a mill levy was created in 1862, the first two school districts, Golden and Vasquez (roughly today's Wheat Ridge/Arvada area), were organized in 1863. That September the first public school in the county opened in Golden.
Original School Districts
Over time, as the population grew and spread across the county, more and more school districts were organized, each with its own elected board to govern them. They were a diverse variety of schools, from the stately brick edifices of urban Golden which operated through the traditional school year to the rural one-room wooden schoolhouses that operated during the summer months because winter in the mountains made it difficult for students to attend. Some school districts only rented buildings for class; others shared into neighboring counties. The first building constructed as a Jefferson County public school, around the area of 14th and Arapahoe Streets in Golden, was never completed and eventually sold in 1866 to Colorado Territorial Governor Alexander CummingsAlexander Cummings
Alexander Cummings was a Scottish watchmaker who was the first to patent a design of the flush toilet. His premises were in Bond Street, London.Born in Edinburgh in 1733, Cummings was a mathematician and mechanic as well as a watchmaker...
for $2,700 for use as the Territorial Executive Building. Its replacement, the first completed public school building in Jefferson County, still stands today at 1420 Washington Avenue in Golden. After the completion of its successor at today's 1314 Cheyenne Street in 1873, later known as the South School, Jefferson County's first senior high school, Golden High School
Golden High School
Golden High School is a secondary school in Golden, Colorado. It is located in Golden, the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Jefferson County Public Schools district.- History :...
, was organized. The first public school graduations in Jefferson County were held in the 1880s.
By 1894 Jefferson County school enrollment was around 1,500 students, with 54 high school students. By 1939 Jeffco had blossomed to 3,883 students with 1,426 high schoolers. In the early 20th century, however, population shifts and other factors began to spur consolidation. The Lorraine School District of Jefferson County merged with the Mandalay School District of Boulder County (Broomfield) in 1917. In 1920 the Montana, Lakeview, Midway and Mt. Carbon districts merged to become Bear Creek District C-1. In 1923 several mountain districts merged into Evergreen District C-2, while in 1945 Washington Heights and Bancroft merged to form School District 52. However, some school districts went by the wayside including South Platte in 1944, Pleasant Park in 1946, and Pine Grove. By 1950 only 39 of the 54 individually organized school districts remained.
List of Historic School Districts
Note: several districts have different identities over time- 1 - Golden
- 2 - Everett/Vasquez/Arvada
- 3 - Mt. Vernon/Kittredge
- 4 - Bergen/Creswell
- 5 - Bear Creek/Mt. Carbon
- 6 - Ralston/Fremont
- 7 - Upper Ralston/Leyden
- 8 - Vasquez/Wheat Ridge
- 9 - Mt. Vernon/Bradford Junction/Conifer
- 10 - Guy Hill
- 11 - Platte/Spruce Park & Sprucedale
- 12 - Ralston
- 13 - Mountain/Rockland
- 14 - Clear Creek/Maple Grove
- 15 - Platte Canyon/Deer Creek
- 16 - Bear Creek/Montana
- 17 - Turkey Creek/Brownville/Medlen
- 18 - Pine & Estabrook
- 19 - Pleasant Park
- 20 - Fairmount
- 21 - Lakewood/Edgewater
- 22 - Mt. Morrison
- 23 - Lothrop
- 24 - South Platte
- 25 - Lorraine & Mandalay
- 26 - Turkey Creek/Hodgson
- 27 - Coal Creek Canyon/Columbine
- 28 - Pine Grove
- 29 - Belcher Hill
- 30 - Buffalo Creek/Evergreen
- 31 - Soda Creek
- 32 - Fruitdale
- 33 - Jefferson City/Plainview
- 34 - Kassler
- 35 - Urmston
- 36 - Lamb
- 37 - Lakeview
- 38 - Parmelee Gulch
- 39 - Semper
- 40 - Buffalo Creek
- 41 - Bancroft
- 42 - Idledale
- 43 - Wagner
- 44 - Prospect Valley
- 45 - Midway
- 46 - Sampson
- 47 - Lakewood - Stober Elementary
- 48 - Daniels
- 49 - Denver View
- 50 - Washington Heights
- 51 - Mountair
- 52 - Washington Heights & Bancroft
- C-1 - Bear Creek Consolidated
- C-2 - Evergreen Consolidated
Unification and Modern Era
In 1950, the 39 school districts in Jefferson County were consolidated and reorganized into a single district, Jefferson County R-1 Schools. It was so named as the Reorganized School District 1, and ushered in a modern age in a county where some still sent to school in the original one-room rural schoolhouses. Through the course of time several landmark school buildings had been built across Jefferson County, including Golden's North, South, Central and High schools; the stone Morrison school; and Lakewood's 3-school campus. With renewed energy a new generation would be built, and state-of-the-art schools sprouted across Jefferson County as old schools were phased out. By 1999 Jefferson County had an enrollment of 88,793 students.Today the next wave of school buildings is being created, as Jefferson County schools move forward into the 21st century. However, a good collection of schools from throughout Jeffco's educational history remain. These include Golden's 1866 school and 1924 High School; Stober Elementary; the Arvada School; Arvada High School; Denver View School; Soda Creek School; Buffalo Creek School; Pine Grove School; Pine & Estabrook School; Conifer Junction School; Coal Creek School; Columbine School (Coal Creek); Sampson School; Lamb School; Daniels School; Edgewater Elementary School; Medlen School; Buffalo Park School; Evergreen School; Guy Hill School; Belcher Hill School; Robinson Hill School; Idledale School; Kittredge School; Lakewood Schools campus; Washington Heights School; Mt. Carbon School; Bancroft School; Morrison School; Rockland School; Mountain View School; Mountain View Elementary School; Fruitdale School; Pleasant Park School; Elk Creek School; Hodgson School; Mandalay School, Ralston School, Leyden School, and possibly more. They serve many uses from private homes to museums, and several are designated Jefferson County, Colorado and National Historic Register landmarks.
Through Jeffco schools history there have been several tragic events which have not been forgotten. In 1887 the original Lamb School, which had just been built the year before, burned down and had to be replaced. In 1905 Golden's South School, including Golden High School, was saved from explosion by janitor Oscar Nolin when its overheating boiler was minutes away from claiming possibly over 100 lives. In 1916 the original Fruitdale School burned as its students marched to safety. In 1919 an attempt to burn down the South School was made by a parent frantic to keep the school from reopening in the wake of the Great Flu Epidemic, but the fire smothered itself out. In 1938 the recently built Buffalo Creek School burned while school was in session from an overheated furnace, and teacher Wilma Barnes successfully got all 15 students to safety. Best known is the Columbine High School massacre
Columbine High School massacre
The Columbine High School massacre occurred on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Columbine, an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States, near Denver and Littleton. Two senior students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12...
in 1999, when two students killed 12 students and a teacher. However, that teacher Dave Sanders proved another hero, having helped many students to safety before losing his own life. Recently Bear Creek High School has caught fire 3 times. On February 23, 2010, Two people were shot but not killed at Deer Creek Middle School. The shooting ended when a math teacher tackled the perpetrator, Bruco Eastwood.
Environmental consideration
Many Jefferson County schools make use of constructed wetlandConstructed wetland
A constructed wetland or wetpark is an artificial wetland, marsh or swamp created as a new or restored habitat for native and migratory wildlife, for anthropogenic discharge such as wastewater, stormwater runoff, or sewage treatment, for land reclamation after mining, refineries, or other...
s for managing stormwater and contributing to the health of local watersheds. The wetland project at Oberon Middle School has been lauded by the National Resources Defense Council for setting "an example for local governments seeking new ways to manage stormwater on municipal grounds with some value added."
Literary mentions
Oberon Middle School was the setting for the novel Define 'Normal by Julie Anne PetersJulie Anne Peters
-Personal life:Julie Anne Peters was born in Jamestown, New York, on 16 January 1952. When she was five, her family moved to the Denver suburbs in Colorado. Her parents divorced when she was in high school...
.
Schools
There are currently 94 elementary schools in Jefferson County. Some of the elementary schools are gifted/talented schools. Kendrick Lakes Elementary school is just one of many GT centers throughout the district. The school currently offers a 1/2 multi-grade GT class, a 3rd GT class, a 4th GT class, and a 5/6 multi-grade class. For further information about the programs at Kendrick Lakes, please call the school at 303-982-8334.Elementary schools
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Middle Schools
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Senior High schools
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Golden High School Golden High School is a secondary school in Golden, Colorado. It is located in Golden, the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Jefferson County Public Schools district.- History :... (1873) (web site) Green Mountain High School Green Mountain High School is a high school in the western part of the city of Lakewood in Jefferson County, Colorado. It is administered by Jefferson County Public Schools. The student body numbers approximately 1600... (1973) (web site) Jefferson High School (Edgewater, Colorado) Jefferson High School is a high school located in Edgewater, Colorado. Jefferson High School is operated by Jefferson County Public Schools.-Demographics:Enrollment in the 2008-2009 school year was 619 students.*16.0% White*5.7% African American... (1955)(web site) Lakewood High School (Colorado) Lakewood High School is a public secondary school located in Lakewood, Colorado and is part of the Jefferson County School District. Lakewood was ranked as the 111th best school in the nation by Newsweek in 2006 and more recently as the 108th best school in 2008, which makes it the highest ranked... (1928) (web site) Pomona High School (Arvada, Colorado) Pomona High School is a public secondary school operated by Jefferson County School District R-1 in Arvada, Colorado, United States.-History:Pomona High School was built in 1973 and named for the nearby Pomona Lakes. Located in Arvada, Colorado and a part of the Jefferson County Public School... (1973) (web site) Ralston Valley High School Ralston Valley High School is a public high school in Arvada, Colorado. Since it opened for the 2000 school year, its enrollment has grown to around 1700 students... (2000) (web site) Standley Lake High School Standley Lake High School is a public secondary school operated by Jefferson County School District R-1 in Westminster, Colorado, United States. The school is located near 104th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard and is named for nearby Standley Lake. The high school opened in 1988 and a new addition... (1988) (web site) Wheat Ridge High School Wheat Ridge High School is a public secondary school operated by the Jefferson County School District R-1 in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, United States.-History:From the :... (1957) (web site) |
Option schools
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Long View High School Long View High School, located in Lakewood, Colorado, is a small alternative Jefferson County Public School, the smallest comprehensive public school in the Denver metro area. Long View was started in 1994 as a unique educational option within Jefferson County Public Schools... (web site) |
Special schools and programs
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Charter schools
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Private Schools
Private schools that serve Jefferson County Public School families include Broomfield AcademyBroomfield Academy
Broomfield Academy is an independent nationally accredited private elementary school and middle school serving children ages 2 ½-14. It is located in Broomfield, Colorado, and offers small class sizes, individualized student learning plans and an advanced curriculum...
, which provides individualized education for children ages 3-14.
Former schools
- Columbia Heights Elementary School - 32nd & Chase Street / Turned into a Cottage School (Grades K - 3 in 1974) Now a Library and Senior Center
- Community Involved Charter School / Center for Discovery Learning Charter School (closed 2005)
- Fruitdale School, Wheat Ridge (closed June 1978)
- Jefferson County Open High School (merged into Jefferson County Open School, 1989)
- Mountain Open High School, Evergreen (renamed Jefferson County Open High School, 1978)
- Open Living School, Edgewater (combined into Tanglewood Open Living School in 1978)
- Open Living School, Evergreen (combined into Tanglewood Open Living School in 1978)
- Tanglewood Open Living School, Golden (merged into Jefferson County Open School, 1989)
- Russell Elementary, Arvada (closed, 2010)