The top reported proficiency rate is 24% in English language arts. The lowest is 6% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood
Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood is a charter middle school serving grades six through eight in Denver. It is a regular public school operating under a charter within Denver Public Schools. The school’s enrollment is made up almost entirely of students who identify as Hispanic, with a very small number of students from other racial and ethnic backgrounds. A substantial share of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch.
This is a school where state assessment results show significant challenges. On the Colorado Measures of Academic Success, the share of students scoring proficient or above in math was in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Denver County. Reading and writing proficiency was higher than math but still low overall. The science proficiency rate, measured only in the tested grade, was very low. A parent looking at these scores would want to investigate further with the school about academic support and intervention strategies. The school did not have state testing data available for prior years, so there is no way to see whether these results represent a change or a continuing pattern.
Denver itself is a large, consolidated city-county that serves as the state capital and the economic engine of the Front Range. Its economy spans telecommunications, aerospace, software, financial services, health care, and tourism, and it hosts a number of Fortune 500 headquarters. The city has a dense downtown core with cultural institutions, a large university presence, and professional sports teams. The surrounding area has experienced sustained population growth and suburban development. Within this metro context, the school draws from a zip code where home values have softened in the most recent year and where rents are somewhat lower than the metro average, reflecting a more affordable corner of what is generally an expensive housing market.
As a middle school only, Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood does not have a graduation rate to report. The school’s location in Denver means it sits within a large district that has recently undergone several notable changes. Voters approved a major bond measure in 2024, the largest in district history, to fund facility improvements, safety upgrades, and new construction. The district also shifted to a unified enrollment system for school choice starting in the 2024-2025 school year, changing how families apply to schools. A separate mill levy override passed in 2022 boosted teacher pay and mental health services. These district-level moves could affect the school’s facilities, staffing, and enrollment processes, but the specific impact on Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood is not detailed in the available data.
The school operates as a charter, which means it has its own governance and approach separate from the district’s traditional schools, while still being part of the district’s overall system. A family considering this school would be choosing a small middle school with a very homogeneous student population and a charter structure. The academic results are a clear weakness. The school’s peer environment and the academic pathway it provides are defined by the very low proficiency rates on state exams. For a parent weighing options, this school fits a family whose priority is a charter middle school in the Westwood neighborhood of Denver, but who should come ready with questions about how the school addresses its core academic performance.
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