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Best kept secret at Side Creek Elementary School?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
512
Elementary
DISTRICT 517 · STATE 379
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·AURORA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 080234001432
Side Creek Elementary School
19191 EAST ILIFF PL, AURORA, CO 80013 · (303) 755-1785 · Arapahoe County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL512 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
19.0:1
27 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 20.2:1 · STATE 16.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
72%
368 students
DISTRICT 81% · 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 48 | 9% |
| Kindergarten | 73 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 80 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 79 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 75 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 85 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 72 | 14% |
This year's kindergarten class (73) is about the same size as its 5th grade class (72).
Student demographics
74%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 60% · 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
19.8%
CO avg 44.9% . -1.9pp since 2023
Math
17.3%
CO avg 36.1% . +1.6pp since 2023
What this means: On the CMAS, Colorado's statewide test, about 20 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 17 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Colorado schools, those numbers are about 45 and 36. Reading and writing scores are down about 2 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 2 points.
CMAS results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 19.8% | 17.3% |
| 2023-24 | 21.7% | 15.7% |
% 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
17.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
23.1%
based on CO schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-5.4pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 18% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 23% 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 Side Creek Elementary School
Side Creek Elementary School's state test result (17.7% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Side Creek Elementary School this school | 512 | 71.9% | 17.7% |
| Arkansas Elementary School AURORA | 432 | 75.0% | 25.4% |
| Vassar Elementary School AURORA | 500 | 72.8% | 27.4% |
| Dalton Elementary School AURORA | 430 | 75.6% | 28.4% |
| Ponderosa Elementary School AURORA | 634 | 71.5% | 18.2% |
| Denver Green School Southeast DENVER | 586 | 64.8% | 19.5% |
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 Side Creek Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Colorado | In Arapahoe County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 17.7% | #808 of 931 | #77 of 96 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 17.3% | #757 of 940 ▲ 25 | #74 of 96 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 19.8% | #827 of 946 ▼ 40 | #77 of 96 ▼ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 512 | #216 of 1,056 | #40 of 104 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 19.0:1 | #829 of 896 | #87 of 97 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 74.2% | #8 of 896 | #7 of 97 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 71.9% | #249 of 983 | #31 of 101 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +0.2% | #198 of 200 | #20 of 20 |
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
512
+74 (+17%) vs 2020
-8% since 1990-91, when it was 556
Student : Teacher
19.0:1
was 16.9:1
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 | 512 | 27 | 19.0:1 | 72% (368) |
| 2023-24 | 508 | 27 | 18.8:1 | 71% (359) |
| 2022-23 | 501 | 25 | 20.0:1 | 68% (342) |
| 2020-21 | 438 | 26 | 16.9:1 | 61% (268) |
| 2017-18 | 511 | 24.3 | 21.0:1 | 50% (258) |
| 2015-16 | 619 | 30 | 20.6:1 | 50% (308) |
| 2010-11 | 663 | 27 | 24.6:1 | 44% (293) |
| 2000-01 | 634 | 27 | 23.5:1 | 13% (82) |
| 1990-91 | 556 | 26 | 21.4:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Side Creek Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students unchanged (511 to 512); teachers up 11% (24.3 to 27).
About Side Creek Elementary School
Side Creek Elementary School is a mid-sized elementary school in AURORA, Colorado, administered by Aurora Public Schools. The school runs pre-K through 5 and enrolls 512 students. That compares with an average of about 379 students for elementary schools in Colorado.
The district for Side Creek Elementary School is Aurora Public Schools, with 59 schools and 39,464 students.
No group is above 50% at Side Creek Elementary School; the largest is Hispanic, at 40%. After that, the student body is 20% White, 17% Black, 15% multiracial, and 6% Asian. Among all residents of Arapahoe County, the Hispanic share is about 22%. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 74%.
There are 27 full-time-equivalent teachers at the school, a ratio of 19.0:1. Compared with the 16.6:1 average for elementary schools in Colorado, this school's ratio is higher. On the income side, 72% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Among public schools in Arapahoe County, the average eligibility rate is 50%.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Side Creek Elementary School is 5.4 points below the average proficiency rate across its state test results predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 17.7% actual, 23.1% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in Colorado.
In Arapahoe County, home to about 659,844 people, median household income comes to about $101,087, 47% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Arapahoe County's 176 public schools enroll about 115,502 students and include Side Creek Elementary School.
Vassar Elementary School sits about 0.9 miles from Side Creek Elementary School. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools. The school's 17.7% average proficiency ranks 7th among 9 nearby schools.
Federal records code the school's setting as City: Large.
Over the 4 years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, enrollment increased 17%. By 2024-25, the school had 19.0 students per teacher, compared with 16.9 in 2020-21.
The discussion board for Side Creek Elementary School is open to topics like athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to post.
Arapahoe County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
659,844
Census ACS
Median income
$101,087
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
47%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
176
115,502 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Aurora Public Schools
- Aurora Central CampusCombined · 2,468 students
- Rangeview High SchoolHigh · 2,078 students
- Vista Peak 9-12 PreparatoryHigh · 2,045 students
- Gateway High SchoolHigh · 1,748 students
- Hinkley High SchoolHigh · 1,527 students
- Lotus School for ExcellenceCombined · 1,008 students
Other schools in AURORA
- Cherokee Trail High SchoolHigh · 3,089 students
- Grandview High SchoolHigh · 2,684 students
- Aurora Central CampusCombined · 2,468 students
- Smoky Hill High SchoolHigh · 2,297 students
- Overland High SchoolHigh · 2,228 students
- Rangeview High SchoolHigh · 2,078 students
Nearby schools
- Vassar Elementary School0.9 mi · 500
- Rangeview High School0.9 mi · 2,078
- Mrachek Middle School1.0 mi · 811
- Arrowhead Elementary School1.0 mi · 499
- Arkansas Elementary School1.5 mi · 432
- Columbia Middle School1.6 mi · 636
Frequently asked questions
About Side Creek Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Side Creek Elementary School?
Side Creek Elementary School enrolls approximately 512 students in grades PK-05.
Is Side Creek Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Side Creek Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many students per teacher at Side Creek Elementary School?
Approximately 19.0:1 students per teacher at Side Creek Elementary School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Side Creek Elementary School?
At Side Creek Elementary School, the student body is approximately 20% White, 40% Hispanic, 17% Black, 6% Asian, 15% Two or more.
Is Side Creek Elementary School public or private?
Side Creek Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Aurora Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.