Original Research by School Decision on Aspire Online Academy
Aspire Online Academy is a regular public school serving kindergarten through twelfth grade within the Harrison School District No. 2 in Colorado Springs. It is not a charter school. The school operates as a fully online program, which shapes nearly every aspect of its identity and how a family would experience it.
The student body is small and diverse. Hispanic students make up the largest share, followed by white students and Black students, with a smaller share of students who identify as two or more races. The school serves a wide grade span, from kindergarten through twelfth grade, and enrollment is spread across all levels, with the largest single grade being seventh. The school is part of the Harrison district, which in late 2024 approved a mill levy to fund the D2 Promise Program, offering free tuition and fees at Pikes Peak State College for qualifying district high school graduates. That is a concrete financial pathway for families who see a two-year college start as a strong option.
State testing data for Aspire Online Academy is largely suppressed, and the participation rates were low across the board. In math and English language arts for grades three through eight, the participation rate was about a fifth of students. In science, participation was even lower at fifth grade and about a fifth at eighth grade. Because so few students took the state assessments, the state suppressed the proficiency results. This means there is no reliable measure of academic performance from the state tests. A parent should understand that the online model itself may account for low testing participation, as remote students may not come to a physical site for assessments, but the absence of data makes it impossible to compare this school's academic outcomes to others in the area. There is no graduation rate available either, which is a gap worth noting; the school serves twelfth grade, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about its graduation and postsecondary outcomes.
The school is part of the Harrison School District No. 2, which sits within El Paso County. The comparison data that would place this school relative to other districts in the county was not applicable because the key metrics were missing. That means there is no way to say how Aspire Online Academy's proficiency, graduation, or attendance compare to neighboring schools.
Colorado Springs itself is a large, sprawling city with a strong military and aerospace economy. The city has grown substantially over the past few decades and continues to expand. Housing values in the area around the school are roughly in line with the state benchmark, and rents have been rising modestly. The broader economic context shows a national unemployment rate that has been stable and a median household income that has been trending upward nationally.
For a family considering Aspire Online Academy, the central fact is that the school offers a fully online public school option from kindergarten through twelfth grade, but there is no state testing data to evaluate academic performance. The low participation rates on state assessments mean the state suppressed the results. A parent should ask the school directly about how it measures student progress, what its graduation rate is, and how it supports students who may need extra help. The D2 Promise Program is a concrete benefit for high school students who plan to attend Pikes Peak State College, and that may be a meaningful factor for families weighing this option. The school's small enrollment and diverse student body are characteristics to consider, but without academic outcome data, the decision rests largely on whether the online format and the district's college promise align with a family's priorities.
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