The top reported proficiency rate is 67% in Science. The lowest is 65% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Franktown Elementary School
Franktown Elementary School is a regular public elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in the Douglas County School District. Franktown itself is an unincorporated rural community, a small crossroads at the intersection of two state highways, surrounded by large-acreage ranches and a handful of local businesses. The school sits on its own campus along the highway, a short drive from the town’s historic district and the nearby Castlewood Canyon State Park. The community actively resisted the suburban development that swept across much of Douglas County, so the setting remains distinctly rural and low-density, with no walkable commercial core. For families considering the area, the housing market reflects this desirability and scarcity: home values in the zip code are well above the statewide benchmark, and purchasing a home here requires a substantial income well above the national median.
The school itself is a solid performer on the Colorado Measures of Academic Success. In both math and English language arts, the share of students scoring at the proficient level or above is well above the midpoint among schools across the state. Science proficiency, tested in fifth grade, is similarly strong, with roughly two out of every three students meeting that bar. These results come with high participation rates in state testing, lending confidence to the picture they paint. The school serves about the enrollment you would expect for an elementary that draws from a wide rural attendance zone. The student body is predominantly white, and the share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch is modest, indicating a relatively low level of concentrated poverty. Data on the share of students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the public reporting used for this profile, so those dimensions of student support cannot be assessed directly here.
The school’s parent district, Douglas County School District, has made several recent investments that bear on Franktown Elementary. A new evidence-based literacy curriculum, aligned with state requirements, was rolled out across all elementary schools beginning in the 2023-24 school year, shifting how reading is taught in classrooms. Voters have also approved two recent ballot measures: a mill levy override in 2022 that provides ongoing funding for teacher and staff compensation along with mental health and social-emotional learning support, and a larger bond and second mill levy override in 2024. The bond is funding new school construction in growth areas, safety upgrades, and technology and facility improvements across the district, while the override provides additional funding for recruiting and retaining staff. The effects of these investments at Franktown Elementary in particular will depend on how resources are distributed, but the district-wide commitment to teacher retention and instructional reform is relevant for any family considering the school.
The comparison data for this school was limited. The set of districts in Douglas County is small, and there were not enough peers with comparable reported data to position Franktown Elementary’s proficiency results relative to other districts in the county. That means the state-level context provided above is the most reliable external benchmark available.
Franktown Elementary is a good fit for a family seeking a rural elementary experience with strong academic outcomes, in a community that has deliberately held onto a ranching-and-crossroads character. The school does not serve grades beyond fifth, so a family would be looking at a full transition to a middle school elsewhere in the district. The rural setting, limited local businesses, and car-dependent lifestyle are defining characteristics of the town, not incidental features. For a family comfortable with that trade-off, the academic foundation here appears solid.
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