Ralston Elementary School

Ralston Elementary School is a K-5 school of compact scale in GOLDEN, Colorado, overseen by Jefferson County School District No. R-1, enrolling 289 students in grades K through 5. Enrollment runs roughly 24% below the state mean of about 379.

Ralston Elementary School is one of 148 schools operated by Jefferson County School District No. R-1, a district that serves 74,935 students overall.

On the student-mix side, Ralston Elementary School shows that nearly all students (84%) are White; the rest breaks down as 8% multiracial, 6% Hispanic.

Looking at the economic backdrop, On paper, Ralston Elementary School has 17 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 17.2:1. That tracks the state average closely. About 3% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Jefferson County (around 32%), the school's rate is noticeably below typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Ralston Elementary School sits in the top 10% of Colorado schools after the BeatsExpectations adjustment. Predicted proficiency for the school's FRL share is roughly 64.8%; actual is 79.7%, +14.8 points clear of the demographic baseline.

In the area at large, community-level numbers for Jefferson County indicate median household earnings sit near $110,656, 52% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 4%. In all, Jefferson County runs 168 public schools (combined enrollment of about 74,739 students), of which Ralston Elementary School is one.

Nearest neighbor: Bergen Elementary School, around 3.5 miles off. Within five miles, there are 6 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Ralston Elementary School at 1st of 6; the average score across the group is 61.2%.

Geographically, the school is in an outlying area.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Ralston Elementary School has declined 11%, going from 325 students in 2018 to 289 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 18.4:1 in 2018 to 17.2:1 today.

On allk12, the feed for Ralston Elementary School typically covers open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.