The top reported proficiency rate is 15% in Science. The lowest is 13% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Virginia Court Elementary School
Virginia Court Elementary School serves students from preschool through fifth grade in Aurora, Colorado, as part of the Aurora Joint District No. 28 (Aurora Public Schools). It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. The school has a large elementary enrollment. The student body is diverse, with a majority of students identifying as Hispanic, a substantial share identifying as Black, and smaller shares identifying as White, Asian, or with two or more races. A very high proportion of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a population with significant economic need.
State testing results are available for math, English language arts, and science. In all three subjects, the share of students scoring at or above proficiency is low, well below typical state averages. The school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects places it in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Arapahoe County. This is a soft spot that a parent may want to look into further with the school, especially to understand what academic supports are in place. Participation rates on the assessments were high, so the results reflect a near-complete picture of student performance.
The school is located in Aurora, a sprawling, largely suburban city that is the third-largest in Colorado. The built environment is predominantly car-dependent, though public transit options include light rail lines and bus routes. Aurora lacks a single traditional downtown; civic life is distributed across a large footprint. Major employers include Buckley Space Force Base, the Anschutz Medical Campus, and the school district itself. The city has seen significant growth in recent decades, with continued development planned in the corridor near Denver International Airport.
Housing in the school’s immediate area is moderately priced compared to the state as a whole, with home values slightly below Colorado’s median and rents that are lower than the estimated monthly mortgage cost for a typical home in the zip code. Affordability for a family considering the area would depend on income, but the housing costs are not among the highest in the region.
At the district level, voters approved a bond measure in late 2022 that funds facility improvements, safety upgrades, and school modernization across Aurora Public Schools. The district has also undertaken a school consolidation and repurposing process, closing or repurposing underutilized buildings. These changes affect school assignments and campus availability for families. It is worth asking how these initiatives may influence Virginia Court Elementary’s facilities or attendance boundaries in the coming years.
No data was available on chronic absenteeism, discipline, staffing ratios, or program offerings such as gifted education, specials, or before- and after-school care. For an elementary school, these are relevant dimensions of the daily experience, and a family may want to inquire directly about class sizes, enrichment opportunities, and the school’s approach to supporting students who are below grade level in reading and math.
Virginia Court Elementary is a large, high-poverty school in a sprawling suburban district undergoing facility investment and consolidation. Its academic proficiency rates are low compared with other schools in the county. For a family weighing this school, the key considerations are the economic composition of the student body, the need to probe the academic support structure, and the broader district context of modernization and restructuring.
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