The top reported proficiency rate is 33% in Science. The lowest is 16% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Nettie S Freed K-8 Expeditionary School
Nettie S Freed K-8 Expeditionary School serves kindergarten through sixth grade as a regular public school in Pueblo School District 60. The school is located in the city of Pueblo, a mid-sized place with a strong industrial and cultural identity. The enrollment is small for its grade band, with a student body that is majority Hispanic and includes a substantial share of white students; smaller groups of students who are American Indian or Alaska Native, Black, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and multiracial round out the population. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which makes this a school serving a high-need community.
Pueblo itself is a city that blends an industrial heritage as a former steel-producing center with a more diversified economy now anchored in healthcare, education, and government. Its downtown features the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk and the Union Avenue Historic Commercial District, while the city also hosts the annual Colorado State Fair. The school sits within a district that voters approved a major bond measure for facility improvements and safety upgrades in recent years, which may have implications for the school's physical infrastructure in the long run. The district also underwent a name change, reverting to Pueblo School District 60 after having been known as Pueblo City Schools, a rebranding that continues to shape its public identity.
Academically, the state testing data shows a mixed picture. In math, the proficiency rate for all tested students in grades three through six fell below the midpoint among available schools in Pueblo County, while in English language arts the rate was somewhat higher but still below what many families would consider strong. Science proficiency, tested only in grade five, was higher than both but remained in a similar range. Overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places this school above the midpoint relative to other districts in Pueblo County, but the absolute rates are low enough that a parent may want to look into this further with the school to understand how instruction and intervention are being approached.
The school's name includes "Expeditionary School," a pedagogy-focused label that suggests an approach centered on hands-on learning, community-connected projects, and character development. This is a distinctive feature that may appeal to families looking for a non-traditional classroom environment. The school does not currently serve grades seven or eight, so a family with a student completing sixth grade here would need to plan for a middle school transition, either within District 60 or elsewhere.
State testing data is available for the grades tested. Data on special education identification rates and English learner populations was not reported in the source materials, so the extent of those supports is unclear. Housing in the school's zip code area reflects a market that is modestly priced relative to state and national benchmarks; rents are lower than the national average, while home values show a recent slight decline. The combination of a high-need student body, a distinctive expeditionary model, and academic outcomes that need attention creates a particular profile. This is a school where a parent deeply invested in the pedagogical philosophy may find alignment, but where standardized results suggest that academic support structures are worth a close conversation with the school leadership.
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