Wheat Ridge High School

As a reasonably sized high school in WHEAT RIDGE, Colorado, Wheat Ridge High School instructs 932 students from grades 9 through 12, operated by Jefferson County School District No. R-1. Compared to the state average of about 627 students per school, that is 49% above typical.

Within Jefferson County School District No. R-1, which oversees 148 schools and 74,935 students, Wheat Ridge High School is one campus in the system.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Wheat Ridge High School reports that the largest single group is White at 54%, but no single group is in the majority. Beyond that, the school reports 37% Hispanic, 4% multiracial, 3% Black. The wider county runs roughly 80% White, putting the school's mix considerably less White than the area baseline.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 52 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 18.0:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 16.9:1 average. About 42% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. That share is higher than Jefferson County's rate of about 32%.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Wheat Ridge High School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 41.2%, the actual is 34.6%, a residual of -6.5 points.

Zooming out to the county, the surrounding county (Jefferson County) reports that median household income runs about $110,656, 52% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 4%. In all, Jefferson County runs 168 public schools (combined enrollment of about 74,739 students), of which Wheat Ridge High School is one.

Nearest neighbor: Everitt Middle School, around 0.5 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Wheat Ridge High School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Wheat Ridge High School at 4th of 7; the average score across the group is 36.5%.

Geographically, the school is in a suburban area.

Looking at the recent track record. Wheat Ridge High School's enrollment has decreased 25% since 2018, when it stood at 1,250 (now 932).

In the discussion threads here, members of the Wheat Ridge High School community share and discuss enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.