The top reported proficiency rate is 29% in English language arts. The lowest is 20% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Sarah Milner Elementary School
Sarah Milner Elementary School is a regular public elementary school in Loveland, Colorado, serving early childhood through fifth grade within the Thompson School District R-2J. This is a neighborhood school, not a charter or magnet, and its student body of roughly that size for an elementary school reflects the surrounding community: predominantly White, with a notable Hispanic share making up about three in ten students, and a very small share of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves many families with lower household incomes.
The school’s state testing results offer a clear picture for parents to weigh. On the Colorado Measures of Academic Success, the share of students scoring proficient or above in math was below the midpoint for the district and county context, and the share in English language arts was somewhat higher but still placed below the midpoint. In science, at the fifth-grade level, the proficiency rate was comparable to the math figure. Taken together, the school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades placed it in the bottom quartile among districts in Larimer County, the comparison set used here. Participation rates on all tests were full, so the results reflect nearly the entire tested student population. A parent considering this school may want to ask what academic support and intervention programs are in place, particularly in math and science.
Loveland itself is a growing city with a distinct split between an older, grid-street downtown core and a newer eastern corridor centered on the I-25 and U.S. Highway 34 interchange, where large retail and commercial development has concentrated. The school is located in the older part of the city, served by a ZIP code that lies on the west side of the highway. The city has long diversified beyond its agricultural roots into manufacturing, technology, and healthcare employment, and it also functions as a bedroom community for commuters to Fort Collins, Denver, and other Front Range employment centers. Housing values in the school’s ZIP code are somewhat above the national benchmark, and rents follow a similar pattern, though both have seen modest year-over-year changes. This is not an inexpensive market, but it is also not the most expensive part of the Front Range.
The Thompson School District R-2J has recently secured significant new funding through voter-approved ballot measures. A bond and a mill levy override passed in 2022, and a second bond measure passed in 2024, both intended to fund facility improvements, safety upgrades, technology, and ongoing operational costs including staffing and class size reduction. These investments will shape the school’s physical plant and resource levels for years to come. Beyond that, the data available did not include detailed program offerings at the school level, so a parent interested in specific enrichment, music, art, or extracurricular options would need to follow up directly with the school.
This is a school that serves a moderate-sized elementary population with notable economic diversity, and its academic results on state assessments are weaker than many of its county peers. For a family, the question is less about whether the numbers are strong on their own terms and more about whether the school’s setting, its district’s recent investment trajectory, and the specific supports offered align with what a child needs. The school does not serve grades that produce a graduation rate or chronic absenteeism metrics, so those measures do not apply here.
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