Steamboat Schools

It looks like the schools in Steamboat Springs have earned top grades again. It's nice to have such a convergence of quality of life and schools in a small town but not surprising given the dedication of the local teachers and parents to kids. While these ratings are based on standardized tests, I think if you consider Steamboat's many unique benefits in and out of school you will find this is a great town to raise your kids. As the lucky father of a 2 1/2 year old boy and 4 week old girl that makes me feel pretty good.

Read on below for more details. School Accountability Reports can be viewed online at the Colorado State Board of Education Web site: www.cde.state.co.us/index_sbe.htm Click on the "Accountability Reports" link.

Selected quotes from the Steamboat Pilot:
Steamboat earns top grades By Mike Lawrence Steamboat Pilot

Student academic performance continues to be strong in Steamboat Springs, is improving in South Routt and is declining slightly in Hayden, according to new educational data.

The Colorado Department of Education released its annual School Accountability Reports for schools across Colorado on Tuesday. The reports rate schools on academic performance and growth, based on standardized test results from the 2004-05 school year.

Strawberry Park Elementary School, Steamboat Springs Middle School and Steamboat Springs High School earned overall academic performance ratings of "excellent," the state's top rating. Soda Creek Elementary School earned a rating of "high," the same rating the school earned last year. Strawberry Park Elementary School and Steamboat Springs High School are the only elementary and high schools within a 75-mile radius to earn "excellent" ratings. Although Strawberry Park's performance rating is the same as last year, the school earned an "improvement" rating for academic student growth, meaning more students scored higher on Colorado Student Assessment Program, or CSAP, tests than a year ago.

For the fourth year in a row, Colorado's education department named Strawberry Park a "John Irwin School of Excellence" for ranking in the top 8 percent of state schools in overall academic performance. "We are really proud of our students, teachers and families," Principal Mark MacHale said. "We greatly appreciate the hard work of all involved."

North Routt Community Charter School received a "low" performance rating at the elementary level and a "high" rating at the middle school level.

Steamboat Springs School District Superintendent Donna Howell said that with the small number of students in the charter schools, SAR ratings can be misleading because low scores from one or two students can have a large effect on school averages.

the story here