CBCS ranks 17th among schools in the state and top 3% in nation

100% graduation rate

[  By Kendra Walker  ]

The Crested Butte Community School has once again ranked well against other Colorado schools for performance on state required tests, graduation and college prep. U.S. News and World Report’s annual Best High Schools Ranking placed Crested Butte Community School 17th out of 363 schools in the state. It landed at 599 out of 17,843 nationally ranked schools.

CBCS earned an overall score of 96.64 out of 100 in the ranking. Most notably, the high school tied at 1st both statewide and nationally for its 100% graduation rate. This score is based on the proportion of entering ninth graders who graduated four academic years later.

“We’re in the top 5% of Colorado schools and the top 3% of high schools nationwide, so that’s pretty fabulous,” said Gunnison Watershed School District superintendent Dr. Leslie Nichols. “I’m very proud of the performance of the Crested Butte school.”

Nichols noted that the results were based on 2021 student performance. U.S. News uses several factors for the ranking, including the number of Advanced Placement (AP) courses taken and passed, state assessment performance in math, reading and science, state assessments based on proportions of students who are Black, Hispanic and from low-income households, and graduation rate. 

Gunnison High School ranked 178 among Colorado schools, in the top 50%, said Nichols. She said that Gunnison’s AP program is not as strong as Crested Butte’s because more students take advantage of in-person course opportunities at Western Colorado University. “The ranking doesn’t capture that, but we have a number of students earning college credit in Gunnison, and how exciting to have the opportunity to attend classes on a college campus in person,” said Nichols. “While those classes are offered district-wide, logistically, there’s been a greater emphasis on offering AP courses in Crested Butte.”

Nichols also noted that while the ranking based on testing is important, it still only captures a narrow window of a school’s success. “There are so many other important elements of a high school, and there’s always more to look at,” she said. 

The district is looking to add a medical assistant program and more early childhood education courses next year. The school district is also launching an expansion of its internship program that will allow high school students to intern with local businesses and earn high school credit.

“We’re hoping we can support some of our local businesses’ workforce needs and to grow our own workforce as part of our career in technical education goals,” said Nichols. “We’re hoping to support all industries in the valley.” 

You can witness Crested Butte Community School’s excellent graduation ranking in action later this month, as graduation will take place on Saturday, May 28 at 10 a.m. at the CBCS soccer field.