Original Research by School Decision on Emily Griffith High School
Emily Griffith High School is an alternative high school serving grades nine through twelve in Denver, Colorado. As an alternative school, its mission and student population differ from those of a comprehensive neighborhood high school, and the data available reflects that distinction. The school belongs to Denver Public Schools, a large urban district that has recently undertaken several major initiatives: voters approved a large bond measure for facility and safety improvements, a mill levy override aimed at teacher pay and mental health support, a district-wide shift to a literacy curriculum based on the science of reading, and a new unified enrollment system for school choice. These district-level changes affect every school, including Emily Griffith.
The student body is relatively small for a high school serving four grades, but the grade distribution is notably uneven. The freshman class is very small, while the senior class is by far the largest. This pattern is typical of alternative schools where students often enroll later in their high school careers, sometimes to catch up on credits or to find a setting that better fits their needs. A substantial share of students come from low-income households, and the population is racially and ethnically diverse, with the largest group being Hispanic students, followed by Black students, White students, and smaller groups of multiracial, American Indian, and Asian students.
The academic performance picture is essentially blank in the available data. State testing results are not reported for this school, and no four-year graduation rate is recorded. For a parent evaluating Emily Griffith, this absence is significant. Alternative schools often serve students who have not succeeded in traditional settings, and many do not participate in standard state assessments at typical rates, or they measure progress through alternative benchmarks. The lack of data does not mean the school is failing; it means the typical metrics used to compare schools simply do not apply here. A parent would need to ask the school directly about how it tracks student progress, credit attainment, graduation pathways, and postsecondary outcomes.
The school is located on Lincoln Street in downtown Denver, near the State Capitol and other civic institutions. Denver is a dense, growing city with a strong economy anchored in telecommunications, aerospace, finance, health care, and tourism. The housing market in the area around the school is expensive; home values and rents are high relative to national averages, though both have seen modest declines recently. The neighborhood is urban and walkable, with cultural amenities and public transit accessible. For families considering the school, this central location may be convenient or challenging depending on commute patterns.
The broader community context shows a city that has expanded steadily for decades, with a ring of suburbs and a built-up corridor along the Front Range. Denver Public Schools serve the entire city, and recent district investments signal a commitment to facility upgrades and instructional changes. Emily Griffith High School occupies a specific niche within that system: it is not a pathway defined by AP courses or test scores but by an alternative approach to earning a diploma. A family considering this school should understand that the conventional academic profile is absent and should seek information from the school about what success looks like for its students, how the staff supports diverse learning needs, and what the typical post-graduation outcomes are. For a student who has struggled in a traditional high school or who needs a more flexible structure, Emily Griffith may offer a fit that the numbers cannot capture.
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