Original Research by School Decision on Gilliam School
Gilliam School is an alternative school serving grades five through twelve in Denver. It is part of Denver Public Schools, the large district that covers the city and county of Denver. The school is located on Downing Street in the city’s urban core, near the Whittier neighborhood. Denver itself is a major consolidated city-county and state capital that functions as the principal commercial, industrial, and transportation hub for the Rocky Mountain West, with an economy spanning telecommunications, aerospace, software, financial services, health care, and tourism.
This is a very small school, with an enrollment that is modest even for an alternative setting. The student body is predominantly Black and Hispanic, together representing the large majority of enrolled students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school serves students across the upper elementary, middle, and high school grades, but the enrollment is concentrated in the high school years, particularly grade ten, with the middle school grades having very few or zero students.
Because Gilliam is an alternative school, its academic profile is distinct from a traditional public school. State testing results for the most recent year were suppressed, meaning they are not publicly reported. The participation rate on state assessments was low, which is a common pattern in alternative settings where the student population may be transient or have circumstances that make standard testing less applicable. The state did not report a graduation rate for this school, which likely reflects its alternative nature and small high school enrollment. A parent considering this school should understand that the conventional academic metrics used to evaluate most schools do not apply here in the same way.
The school environment and support data were not available. Discipline, staffing, attendance, and course access information were missing from the data we reviewed. Similarly, information on special education and English learner populations was not reported. A family looking into Gilliam would want to ask the school directly about these areas, particularly how it supports students academically and behaviorally in an alternative setting.
The housing market in the zip code area around the school shows home values and rents that are above the national benchmark but slightly below the Colorado state benchmark. The area has seen modest declines in home values and rents over the past year, which may be relevant for a family considering a move into the neighborhood.
Denver Public Schools, as a district, passed a large bond measure in 2024 for facility improvements and new school construction. The district also implemented a new unified enrollment system for school choice starting in the 2024-2025 school year, and previously approved a mill levy override to increase teacher pay and mental health resources. These district-level changes may affect how a student accesses Gilliam and what resources are available.
Gilliam is a small alternative school in Denver that serves a racially diverse, low-income student body. Its academic performance data is suppressed, and many typical school metrics are not available. This is a school that likely serves students who need a non-traditional educational setting, and its academic record reflects that purpose rather than a conventional one. A family considering this school would need to gather much more information directly from the school about its program, its student support structures, and what a typical academic pathway looks like for its students.
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