Liberty School

Liberty School, a very small all-grades campus in JOES, Colorado, run under Liberty J-4 School District, instructs 76 students, covering grades pre-K through 12. That puts it 85% smaller than the typical public school in Colorado, which averages around 523 students.

Operationally, Liberty School answers to Liberty J-4 School District, which sets policy, hires staff, and reports enrollment to the state.

Demographically, Liberty School lists that 83% of students identify as White, making the school strongly White-majority; the rest consists of 17% Hispanic. By comparison, Yuma County as a whole is about 71% White, so the school skews meaningfully more White than its surroundings.

Looking at the economic backdrop, On paper, Liberty School has 11 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 7.2:1. The state averages around 14.3:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 43% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. By comparison, Yuma County runs at roughly 61%, so the school's eligibility rate is below the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Liberty School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 40.4%, the actual is 49.3%, a residual of +8.8 points.

Zooming out to the county, census data for Yuma County shows the typical household earns roughly $60,545 per year, about 25% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 15% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Liberty School is one of 9 public schools in Yuma County (combined enrollment of about 1,759 students).

The closest other public school is Idalia Elementary School, roughly 17.9 miles away. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Liberty School at 3rd of 6; the average score across the group is 36.1%.

The campus sits in a low-density setting.

Five-year trend. Liberty School's enrollment has edged up 6% since 2018, when it stood at 72 (now 76). The Hispanic share of enrollment rose from 13% to 17% over that span.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.