The top reported proficiency rate is 56% in Science. The lowest is 53% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Red Sandstone Elementary School
Red Sandstone Elementary School is a regular public school serving students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Vail, Colorado. It is part of Eagle County School District Re 50. The school sits on North Frontage Road, in the heart of a town that is, at its core, a tourism-dependent ski resort. The year-round population is small, but the economy is driven by Vail Ski Resort, Vail Health Hospital, and a vast hospitality sector. The built environment is distinctive: pedestrian-oriented village districts, a free shuttle bus system, and some of the most expensive housing in the state. The median house price is very high, and the town faces a chronic shortage of housing for its workforce, a dynamic that shapes who can live in the community and send their children to this school.
Enrollment at Red Sandstone Elementary is modest for an elementary school, with classes spread across the full K-5 span and a pre-kindergarten program. The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic representation. Children from families that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch make up roughly a quarter of the enrollment, a relatively low share that tracks with the area’s high housing costs and the economic profile of families who can afford to live in Vail year-round. Data on the share of students with an Individualized Education Program or who are English learners was not available; a parent may want to ask the school directly about its special education and multilingual learner supports.
Academically, Red Sandstone Elementary posts results that are solidly above the state average, though a parent should keep in mind that the comparison set for the school within Eagle County is very small—just two districts total—so the neighbor-comparison data could not generate a meaningful performance index. On the state’s Colorado Measures of Academic Success assessment, a majority of students scored proficient or above in English language arts, with a slightly smaller majority reaching that bar in math. Fifth-grade science results were in a similar range. Participation rates on testing were high, above nine in ten, which means the results reflect nearly the full student population. For an elementary school whose mission is building foundational literacy and math skills, these results suggest that most children are meeting grade-level expectations.
Because Red Sandstone is an elementary school serving only through fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report. Similarly, the school does not offer high-school-level coursework such as Advanced Placement, career pathways, or dual-credit programs, and no data was available on course access in other areas. The school is not a charter or magnet school, and information on its Title I status was not provided. There was no publicly reported disciplinary data or chronic absenteeism information, so a parent looking for insight into school climate or student engagement would need to get that from the school directly, especially since Vail’s tight housing market means that some families who work in the community may live outside the town and their children may face longer commutes.
The context of the community itself is important for understanding the school environment. Vail is not a typical suburb or exurb. It is a resort town with a small, affluent year-round resident base, a large seasonal workforce, and a built environment that prioritizes visitors. The town’s government and cultural anchors—Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, the Colorado Ski Museum, Ford Park—are concentrated in the village centers, which also host major summer festivals and events. Growth is constrained by geography and by resident opposition to new housing. For families considering this school, the question is less about whether the academic results are strong—they are—and more about whether Vail’s housing market and resort-driven economy fit their ability to live there and their expectations for a year-round school community.
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