BVSD Named 4th Best School District In Colorado

BOULDER, CO -- Boulder Valley School District has been listed among the top five school systems across the state in a 2019 ranking by Niche.com. The rankings, compiled for 180 Colorado schools, take into account traditional measures like test scores, student–teacher ratios, and graduation rates, but also allow parents and students to weigh in with personal testimonials. Boulder's lowest mark in six categories was for diversity.

"We have had a great experience with Boulder Valley!" wrote one reviewer. "Whenever as a family we have came across an issue, the school my kids go to always give us the resources to help us... They care about my children."

The student–teacher ratio in BVSD was 19:1, compared to an average of 17:1 nationwide, and only 3.5 percent of teachers were in their first or second year in the profession. There was a 92 percent graduation rate, and 58 percent of students scored as "proficient" on state language arts assessment tests, while 52 percent made the grade for math.

The Niche.com methodology places the heaviest weight on academic performance when crafting its lists. 50 percent of a district's total ranking is based on state assessment proficiency, SAT/ACT scores, and survey responses on academics from students and parents. Teacher quality and performance was given 15 percent of the weight, while culture and diversity and parent/student surveys were each given 10 percent.

St. Vrain Valley School District ranked 20th in the state for 2019.

Neither SVVSD nor BVSD received high marks on food, which led one high school senior to use the survey as an opportunity to lodge a very specific complaint. "I liked the academics and the ease of changing schedules and difficulty of classes," the student wrote. However, "The food has a long way to go. It definitely needs to improve a lot."

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