Jefferson County Public Schools (Colorado)

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Template:Short description Template:Use American English Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Jefferson County School District R-1 (a.k.a. Jefferson County Public Schools or Jeffco Public Schools) is a school district in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The district is headquartered at the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center in an unincorporated area of the county near Golden in the Denver metropolitan area.[1][2] Jeffco Public Schools serves almost 81,000 students[3] in 160 schools. It is the second-largest school district in Colorado, having been surpassed in 2013 by Denver Public Schools, which has an enrollment of approximately 81,000. The district covers the entirety of Jefferson County,[4] and also includes a section of Broomfield.[5]

History

File:Jefferson County School No. 1, 1873.jpg
The South School, Golden, Colorado, when it originally served all of Golden School District #1. Photo taken around 1874.

Beginnings

The first school in Jefferson County and the second school in Colorado opened in Golden on January 9, 1860. It stood at around today's 1304 Washington Avenue and was a rented log cabin, with school taught by Thomas Daughterty, with 18 students, financed through tuition and subscription. Its second term was taught by Miss M. F. Manly. When Jefferson County was organized by the Territorial government in 1861, the capability of organizing public schools became reality, and George West became the first superintendent of Jefferson County schools. After a mill levy was created in 1862, the first two school districts, Golden and Vasquez (roughly today's Wheat Ridge/Arvada area), were organized in 1863. That September the first public school in the county opened in Golden.[6]

Original school districts

Over time, as the population grew and spread across the county, more and more school districts were organized, each with its own elected board to govern them. They were a diverse variety of schools, from the stately brick edifices of urban Golden which operated through the traditional school year, to the rural one-room wooden schoolhouses that operated during the summer months because winter in the mountains made it difficult for students to attend. Some school districts only rented buildings for class; others shared into neighboring counties. The first building constructed as a Jefferson County public school, around the area of 14th and Arapahoe Streets in Golden, was never completed and eventually sold in 1866 to Colorado Territorial Governor Alexander Cummings for $2,700 for use as the Territorial Executive Building. Its replacement, the first completed public school building in Jefferson County, still stands today at 1420 Washington Avenue in Golden. After the completion of its successor at today's 1314 Cheyenne Street in 1873, later known as the South School, Jefferson County's first senior high school, Golden High School, was organized. The first public school graduations in Jefferson County were held in the 1880s.

By 1894 Jefferson County school enrollment was around 1,500 students, with 54 high school students. By 1939 Jeffco had blossomed to 3,883 students with 1,426 high schoolers. In the early 20th century, however, population shifts and other factors began to spur consolidation. The Lorraine School District of Jefferson County merged with the Mandalay School District of Boulder County (Broomfield) in 1917. In 1920 the Montana, Lakeview, Midway and Mt. Carbon districts merged to become Bear Creek District C-1. In 1923 several mountain districts merged into Evergreen District C-2, while in 1945 Washington Heights and Bancroft merged to form School District 52. However, some school districts went by the wayside including South Platte in 1944, Pleasant Park in 1946, and Pine Grove. By 1950 only 39 of the 54 individually organized school districts remained.

List of historic school districts

Note: several districts have different identities over time.

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In 1950, the 39 school districts in Jefferson County were consolidated and reorganized into a single district, Jefferson County R-1 Schools.[7] It was so named as the Reorganized School District 1, and ushered in a modern age in a county where some still sent to school in the original one-room rural schoolhouses. Through the course of time several landmark school buildings had been built across Jefferson County, including Golden's North, South, Central and High schools; the stone Morrison school; and Lakewood's 3-school campus. With renewed energy a new generation would be built, and state-of-the-art schools sprouted across Jefferson County as old schools were phased out. By 1999 Jefferson County had an enrollment of 88,793 students.

Today the next wave of school buildings is being created, as Jefferson County schools move forward into the 21st century. However, a good collection of schools from throughout Jeffco's educational history remain. They serve many uses from private homes to museums, and several are designated Jefferson County, Colorado and National Historic Register landmarks.[8]

Through Jeffco schools' history, there have been several fatal events which have not been forgotten. In 1887 the original Lamb School, which had just been built the year before, burned down and had to be replaced. (The rebuilt school was later destroyed by the Lower North Fork Fire in 2012.)[9] In 1905 Golden's South School, including Golden High School, was saved from explosion by janitor Oscar Nolin when its overheating boiler was minutes away from claiming possibly over 100 lives.[10] In 1916 the original Fruitdale School burned as its students marched to safety. In 1919 an attempt to burn down the South School was made by a parent who was frantic to keep the school from reopening in the wake of the Great Flu Epidemic, but the fire smothered itself out. In 1938 the recently built Buffalo Creek School burned while school was in session from an overheated furnace, and teacher Wilma Barnes successfully got all 15 students to safety.[11] On April 7, 1982, Scott Darwin Michael was shot and killed by classmate Jason Rocha at Deer Creek Middle School.[12] In 1999, two students killed 12 students and a teacher in the Columbine High School massacre.

On February 23, 2010, eighth-graders Reagan Webber and Matt Thieu were shot and wounded at Deer Creek Middle School.[13] The incident ended when math teacher David Benke tackled the perpetrator, Bruco Strong Eagle Eastwood, who was armed with a .30-06 Winchester Model 70.[14][15]

In September 2014, students and teachers in schools around the district protested the conservative ideology of the school board, which had proposed reviewing the APUSH curriculum set by the College Board, to focus history education on citizenship and patriotism, while condemning civil disobedience and strike actions.[16][17] The conservative members of the board were recalled and replaced in November 2015, on a 64-36 public vote.[18]

Environmental consideration

Many Jefferson County schools make use of constructed wetlands for managing stormwater and contributing to the health of local watersheds. The wetland project at Oberon Middle School has been lauded by the National Resources Defense Council for setting "an example for local governments seeking new ways to manage stormwater on municipal grounds with some value added.[19]

Literary mentions

Oberon Middle School is the setting for the novel Define "Normal" by Julie Anne Peters.[20]

Facilities

The school district headquarters, which has a Golden postal address, is in an unincorporated area completely surrounded by, but not in, Lakewood.[21][22]

In the 1990 U.S. Census, the facility was defined as being in the Applewood census-designated place.[23][24] In the 2000 U.S. Census, the facility was in West Pleasant View, another CDP in the county.[25][26] In the 2010 U.S. Census and the 2020 U.S. Census, the Jeffco headquarters plot was not defined as being in any CDP.[27]

Schools

As of January 2025, there are 160 active schools in Jeffco Public Schools, as identified by the Colorado Department of Education.[28]

Elementary schools

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Middle/Junior high schools

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Senior high schools

School City Year Opened
Alameda International Junior/Senior High School Lakewood 1960
Arvada High School Arvada 1900
Arvada West High School Arvada 1960
Bear Creek High School Lakewood 1920
Chatfield High School Littleton 1985
Columbine High School Littleton 1973
Conifer High School Conifer 1996
Dakota Ridge High School Littleton 1996
Evergreen High School Evergreen 1954
Golden High School Golden 1873
Green Mountain High School Lakewood 1973
Jefferson High School Edgewater 1955
Lakewood High School Lakewood 1928
Pomona Junior/Senior High School Arvada 1973
Ralston Valley High School Arvada 2000
Standley Lake High School Westminster 1988
Wheat Ridge High School Wheat Ridge 1886

Option schools

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Special schools and programs

  • Connections Learning Center
  • Fletcher Miller School
  • Mt. Evans Outdoor Education Laboratory School
  • Mount View Youth Services Center
  • Sobesky Academy
  • Windy Peak Outdoor Education Laboratory School

Charter schools

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Former schools

School City Year Opened Year Closed Additional Information
Alameda Junior High School Lakewood 1987 current Gold Crown Foundation Fieldhouse[29]
Allendale Elementary School[30] Arvada 1964 2021
Arvada K-8 School[31] Arvada 2010 2024 building was Arvada High School (1953 - 1971), then Arvada Junior High (1971 - ),[32] K-8 restructure followed 2010 closure of Russell Elementary[33]
Belmont Junior High School Lakewood 1955 1979
Bergen Meadow Elementary School[34] Evergreen 1970 2024 consolidated into Bergen Elementary School
Campbell Elementary School[34] Arvada 1964 2023 converted to preschool
Center for Discovery Learning Charter School Lakewood 1994 2005 founded as Community-Involved Charter School, 1994
Colorow Elementary School[34] Littleton 1977 2023
Columbia Heights Elementary School[35] Wheat Ridge 1925 1978 current Wheat Ridge Library and Senior Resource Center
Daniels Elementary[36] Lakewood 1978
Edgewater High School Edgewater 1955 merged into Jefferson High School
Emory Elementary School[34] Lakewood 2015 2023 previously O'Connell Middle School; Rose Stein Elementary School students during building renovation (2015-2018)
Fitzmorris Elementary School Arvada 1960 2022
Fruitdale School[37] Wheat Ridge 1927[35] 1978 current Fruitdale School Lofts[38]
Glennon Heights Elementary School[34] Lakewood 1957 2023
Golden Junior High School[35] Golden 1956 1988 was Golden High School (1924 - 1956);[32] current American Mountaineering Center
Green Mountain Elementary School[34] Lakewood 1962 2023
Earle Johnson Elementary School Golden 1960 1994 current Connections Learning Center
East Arvada Junior High School Arvada 1984 demolished 1986
Irwin Elementary School Lakewood 1989
Juchem Elementary School Broomfield 1955 1989 current Jefferson Academy elementary campus
Kullerstrand Elementary School[34] Wheat Ridge 1961 2023
Lakewood Junior High School Lakewood c. 1970s current Jeffco Open School[32]
Martensen Elementary School[39][40] Wheat Ridge 1954 2011 current Frank DeAngelis Community Safety Center[41]
Molholm Elementary School[34] Lakewood 1955 2023
Moore Middle School Westminster 1980 2024 merged into Pomona High School[42]
Mountain Open High School Evergreen 1975 1989 merged into Jefferson County Open School;[43] site now occupied by Evergreen Library
Mountair High School Lakewood 1955 merged into Jefferson High School
North Lakewood Elementary School[36] Lakewood 1947 1978 property sold by district[44]
O'Connell Middle School Lakewood 2015 merged into Alameda International Junior/Senior High School,[45] subsequently Emory Elementary (2015-2023)
Open Living School Edgewater 1971 1978 merged into Tanglewood School
Open Living School Evergreen 1971 1978 merged into Tanglewood School
Parr Elementary School[34] Arvada 1969 2023
Peck Elementary School[34] Arvada 1966 2023
Peiffer Elementary School[34] Littleton 1973 2023
Pleasant View Elementary School[46] Golden 1950 2017
Russell Elementary School[47] Arvada 1955 2010 current Arvada Head Start campus
Sheridan Green Elementary School[34] Westminster 1988 2023 property reverted to city ownership[48]
Sun Valley Elementary School Lakewood 1971 1979 property sold by district
Tanglewood School Golden 1970 1989 merged into Jefferson County Open School[43]
Thomson Elementary School[34] Arvada 1973 2023
Vivian Elementary School[34] Lakewood 1954 2023
Washington Heights School Lakewood 1898 1968 current Washington Heights Arts Center, city of Lakewood[49]
West Lakewood Elementary School[36] Lakewood 1958 1978 current Dennison Elementary School
Wheat Ridge 5-8 School Wheat Ridge 1924 2015 merged into Jefferson Junior/Senior High School;[45] current Stevens Elementary School
Wilmore-Davis Elementary School[34] Wheat Ridge 1955 2023
Witt Elementary School[34] Westminster 1980 2023
Zerger Elementary School[39][50] Westminster 1977 2011

Demographics

As of January 2025, with an enrollment count of 75,495 for the 2024-2025 school year:[51]

  • American Indian 0.4%
  • Asian 2.7%
  • Black 1.2%
  • Hispanic 26%
  • White 64%
  • Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.13%
  • Multiple races 5%

Superintendents

The position of Superintendent of Schools was an elected position from 1861 to 1967, following the abolition of the position as an elected position by voters in 1966. Since 1967, the district superintendent has been appointed by the school board.[52]

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Footnotes

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  1. ↑ 2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: West Pleasant View CDP, CO (Archive). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on April 3, 2015.
  2. ↑ Contact Us Template:Webarchive Jefferson County Public Schools. Retrieved on April 3, 2011. "1829 Denver West Drive #27 Golden, CO 80401"
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1". - Text list
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1". - Text list
  6. ↑ The Golden Pioneer Museum 1955 - "Sophie Martin" from A Woman's Life In Golden 1902-1980, Lorraine Wagenbach, ed., 1980.
  7. ↑ A Chronology of the History of Jefferson County, Colorado Compiled by Jefferson County Archives and Records Management.
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Implementing Pollution Prevention for Municipal Operations - Constructed Wetland Becomes Outdoor Classroom, Natural Resources Defense Council
  20. ↑ Julie Anne Peters, Hachette Book Group, 2007
  21. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  27. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  28. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  29. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  30. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  31. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  32. ↑ a b c Jefferson County School District (March 1998). Asset Management Plan: 1998-2003. Template:ERIC
  33. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  34. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  35. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  36. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  37. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  38. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  39. ↑ a b Jeffco Public Schools 2011-12 Budget Reductions - FAQ School Closures
  40. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  41. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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Further reading

External links

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Template:Colorado Metro region schools Template:School districts in Colorado

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