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If you had an hour of school board time for Platte River Charter Academy, what would you bring up?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
475
Elementary
DISTRICT 517 · STATE 379
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. RE 1·NCES 080345001584
Platte River Charter Academy
4085 LARK SPARROW ST., HIGHLANDS RANCH, CO 80126 · (303) 221-1070 · Douglas County
GRADES PK–08ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBCHARTERREGULAR SCHOOL475 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 92% of Colorado public elementary schools
- A+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Colorado public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
14.2:1
34 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.1:1 · STATE 16.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
4%
19 students
DISTRICT 19% · STATE 50%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 44 | 9% |
| Grade 1 | 54 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 54 | 11% |
| Grade 3 | 54 | 11% |
| Grade 4 | 54 | 11% |
| Grade 5 | 56 | 12% |
| Grade 6 | 54 | 11% |
| Grade 7 | 53 | 11% |
| Grade 8 | 52 | 11% |
This year's kindergarten class (44) is 15% smaller than its 8th grade class (52).
Student demographics
51%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 52% · STATE 62% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
CMAS 2024-25 . % Met or Exceeded ExpectationsEnglish Language Arts
77.2%
CO avg 44.9% . -0.8pp since 2023
Math
72.2%
CO avg 36.1% . -1.7pp since 2023
What this means: On the CMAS, Colorado's statewide test, about 77 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 72 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Colorado schools, those numbers are about 45 and 36. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2023, while math scores are down about 2 points.
CMAS results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 77.2% | 72.2% |
| 2023-24 | 78.0% | 73.9% |
% Met or Exceeded Expectations, all students and all tested grades.
Source: CMAS. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
73.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
64.3%
based on CO schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+9.2pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 74% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 64% typical for Colorado schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Colorado's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Platte River Charter Academy
Platte River Charter Academy's state test result (73.5% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platte River Charter Academy this school | 475 | 4.0% | 73.5% |
| Superior Elementary School SUPERIOR | 418 | 7.7% | 79.4% |
| Redstone Elementary School HIGHLANDS RANCH | 398 | 9.5% | 73.2% |
| Dennison Elementary School LAKEWOOD | 575 | 12.7% | 88.8% |
| North Star Academy PARKER | 684 | 7.5% | 73.4% |
| Northridge Elementary School HIGHLANDS RANCH | 560 | 15.4% | 73.7% |
Matched among Colorado elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Platte River Charter Academy ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Colorado | In Douglas County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 73.5% | #35 of 931 | #6 of 58 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 72.2% | #40 of 940 ▼ 15 | #9 of 58 ▼ 6 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 77.2% | #35 of 946 ▼ 6 | #10 of 58 ▼ 5 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 475 | #280 of 1,056 | #27 of 62 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.2:1 | #247 of 896 | #6 of 59 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 51.1% | #419 of 896 | #24 of 59 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 4.0% | #980 of 983 | #59 of 60 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -20.8% | #264 of 664 | #22 of 45 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
475
-67 (-12%) vs 2020
+20% since 2000-01, when it was 396
Student : Teacher
14.2:1
was 19.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 475 | 33.5 | 14.2:1 | 4% (19) |
| 2023-24 | 475 | 30.7 | 15.4:1 | 4% (19) |
| 2022-23 | 477 | 28.5 | 16.7:1 | N/A |
| 2020-21 | 542 | 28 | 19.4:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 600 | 27 | 22.3:1 | 1% (3) |
| 2015-16 | 607 | 28 | 21.7:1 | 0% (3) |
| 2010-11 | 520 | 26 | 20.0:1 | 0% (0) |
| 2000-01 | 396 | 25 | 15.8:1 | 0% (0) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Platte River Charter Academy.
Since 2017-18: students down 21% (600 to 475); teachers up 24% (27 to 33.5).
About Platte River Charter Academy
Platte River Charter Academy is a medium-sized elementary school in HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colorado. It serves 475 students in pre-K through 8. The average among elementary schools in Colorado is roughly 379 students; this school is 25% bigger than that.
Platte River Charter Academy is one of the 89 schools that make up Douglas County School District No. Re 1 (61,550 students in total).
By race and ethnicity, Platte River Charter Academy is 68% White. Other reported shares: 13% Asian, 10% multiracial, and 8% Hispanic. That compares with about 80% White among all Douglas County residents. By the diversity index, Platte River Charter Academy comes in at 51%.
A ratio of 14.2:1 comes from the school's 33.5 full-time-equivalent teachers. For comparison, elementary schools in Colorado average 16.6:1. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility was 4% in 2024-25. The average for public schools in Douglas County is 18%.
The allk12 Grade for Platte River Charter Academy is A. Compared with Colorado public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 92% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Platte River Charter Academy is 9.2 points above the average proficiency rate on state tests predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 73.5% actual, 64.3% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in Colorado.
Douglas County census figures show that median household income is about $149,594, roughly 62% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 3%. Platte River Charter Academy is among the 92 public schools in Douglas County.
The shortest distance from Platte River Charter Academy to another public school is about 0.4 miles, to Cougar Run Elementary School. A five-mile radius around the school includes at least 8 other public schools. On state test proficiency, Platte River Charter Academy ranks 2nd in a group of 9 nearby schools.
Platte River Charter Academy is coded as Suburb: Large in federal locale data. This is a charter school, which is a tuition-free public school operating under a charter.
Platte River Charter Academy saw enrollment fall 12% between 2020-21 and 2024-25. Its ratio of students to teachers was 19.4:1 in 2020-21, and 14.2:1 in 2024-25.
The allk12 site hosts a discussion page for Platte River Charter Academy covering things like school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Douglas County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
377,150
Census ACS
Median income
$149,594
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
62%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
3%
Below federal line
Schools in county
92
63,841 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Douglas County School District No. Re 1
- American AcademyElementary · 2,803 students
- Rock Canyon High SchoolHigh · 2,325 students
- Legend High SchoolHigh · 2,206 students
- Mountain Vista High SchoolHigh · 2,169 students
- Chaparral High SchoolHigh · 2,007 students
- Castle View High SchoolHigh · 1,938 students
Other schools in HIGHLANDS RANCH
- Rock Canyon High SchoolHigh · 2,325 students
- Mountain Vista High SchoolHigh · 2,169 students
- Thunderridge High SchoolHigh · 1,820 students
- STEM School Highlands RanchCombined · 1,394 students
- Skyview AcademyCombined · 1,358 students
- Highlands Ranch High SchoolHigh · 1,323 students
Nearby schools
- Cougar Run Elementary School0.4 mi · 392
- Cresthill Middle School0.6 mi · 558
- Highlands Ranch High School0.7 mi · 1,323
- Sand Creek Elementary School1.5 mi · 322
- Skyview Academy1.5 mi · 1,358
- Heritage Elementary School1.5 mi · 377
Frequently asked questions
About Platte River Charter AcademyWhat is the total enrollment at Platte River Charter Academy?
Platte River Charter Academy enrolls approximately 475 students in grades PK-08.
What age range does Platte River Charter Academy serve?
Platte River Charter Academy serves students from grade PK through grade 08.
How many students per teacher at Platte River Charter Academy?
Approximately 14.2:1 students per teacher at Platte River Charter Academy.
What is the student diversity at Platte River Charter Academy?
Student demographics at Platte River Charter Academy are roughly 68% White, 8% Hispanic, 1% Black, 13% Asian, 10% Two or more.
What district is Platte River Charter Academy in?
Platte River Charter Academy is part of Douglas County School District No. Re 1.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.