Challenge School

9659 EAST MISSISSIPPI AVENUE

School District

Cherry Creek 5
Grade

PK, K-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:18
Type

public

School Map for Cherry Creek 5 School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by student on January 23, 2024

This school is a great place to be. As of this writing, I am halfway through my 8th grade year, and I am learning so many things. Big shoutout to Mrs. Eggleston for teaching us algebra in an interesting way. The location is a little out of the way, and a bit cumbersome to deal with if you have children in other schools. The teachers are good at their jobs. We are the only school in the district that does science fair for 7th and 8th graders. There is, however, like a lot of middle schools, some slurs and derogatory comments on one's identity, albeit on a much smaller scale, because this school is tiny. Everyone knows almost everyone, and this creates some pretty nasty friend groups. From what I can see, we don't have a lot of suspensions, and our counselor, Miss Puchino, is available to meet with people and help them through the difficult times of hormones and middle school. The administration is nice and doesn't outright shut down crazy ideas, like a radio control airplane show for continuation. All in all, I would recommend this school.
Submitted by parent on September 29, 2023

The school doesn't have good academics, sports, music or clubs. Really bad school with poor location. The school leaders don't care about student success nor they care about students growth or opportunities. The administration and support staff are rude and not welcoming. The school teachers are average and dont make classes interesting and engaging.
Submitted by parent on September 22, 2023

The teachers of the school are not dedicated. They don't look out for the best interest of the kids but have bias towards students. The administration is really bad and the teachers are not best among CCSD. The environment is not challenging but rather demotivates students. Don't recommend this school. Far better schools in the district.
Submitted by parent on August 16, 2023

The principal of the school is horrible. Doesnt support students. Is extremely rude with parents. He needs to leave Challenge. The school is not worth the drive. The prinicpal and teachers dont see students best interest. Very sad experience and unfortunate to see such poor administration. The prinicpal needs to go.
Submitted by parent on May 22, 2022

Used to love this school until my kid reached 6th grade. Then all sorts of problems started to present itself. For starters, the school is pretty toxic. I think this is because the school is so small and all the kids have been around each other, the same teachers, and doing the same routine since Kindergarten. It wears on the kids, so they start to develop little interpersonal friend issues that linger and the school doesn't do much about it. The kids also survive by being part of a friendship clique and if something happens to that clique- your kid becomes a social outcast and would rather stay home from school than go to school and endure being an outsider. I’ve had to counsel my kid a lot to deal with constant feelings of being accepted. My kid is a 7th grader and thinking of transferring out which makes me sad because we will miss out on the ‘mighty niner’ title my kid earned, just to get away! Tried bring up issues with other kids behavior many times, but was made to feel like my kid was the issue and nothing was done. My kid also tells me about staff and students who make openly racist actions and remarks that are just ignored. Used to love the school, but will not be back next year and I advise incoming parents to really think twice about attending. My kid has been dealing with a lot of emotional issues that have been a direct result from the school. Thinking back, I wish I would have just attended our neighborhood school instead. As another review stated, its not worth the drive across town. Additionally, whatever you can contribute (time or money) is not viewed as enough.
Submitted by parent on April 19, 2022

I have two children at Challenge School.I highly recommend this school due to the dedication and professionalism of all teachers and staff. The school has to observe district and state mandates, which have changed over the years and so have the school, but they always have what is best for students in mind. The student body is small, diverse, and academically above average. I think the main difference to other schools is that a larger portion of the students are very engaged and responsive to the classes, which keeps themselves and the teachers motivated in a virtuous cycle. If you prefer smaller and personable settings, and have a motivated student, you should try to have them attend here!
Submitted by parent on July 09, 2021

My kid is a mighty niner (attending nine years k through 8). Curriculum is advanced and challenging, teachers are amazing, and opportunities are plentiful. The immersion program is my favorite thing about the school.
Submitted by parent on May 03, 2019

My kid was here in this school from her 2nd till 8th grade. She was one of the best and performing student of her batch. The school supports everything a bright kid need.
Submitted by parent on July 15, 2018

My youngest just graduated from Challenge in 2018. This has been her home away from home. She has a group of tight friends, of many races and backgrounds, who will be forever friends. She has been loved, challenged, coached, encouraged, inspired & reprimanded fairly which have aided her development into a wonderful young person. It is definitely worth the drive to Challenge.
Submitted by parent on May 25, 2018

Challenge School isn’t the way it used to be after a change in administration. The school’s learning curriculum is not in any way advanced and the environment of the school is not as accepting or caring as they say it is. The current principle and even some teachers have shown or even said racist actions and remarks. The school does not appreciate anything you do for it whether it’s contributing time or money especially when you are of color. Challenge School is not worth the distance you have to drive or the effort or the struggle to feel accepted. All in all the school isn’t anything special or somewhere you should aspire to be.
Submitted by parent on May 18, 2018

Before this principal, everything was great. My oldest kid achieved so much in this school and now is ranked number one of his class in high school. But my younger kids are suffering from the boring classes and deteriorating academic environment.
Submitted by parent on April 06, 2018

Our overall experience was outstanding for our first two children and we had absolutely no complaints and loved every year, teacher, and fellow community member. The incompetence of the current administration has turned that upside down getting us to the point where we pulled our our youngest child and put him in our neighborhood school. Now, his needs are being met through the pull-out programs (GT). We believe that in most cases (depending how good your neighborhood school is) your child will be better off at your neighborhood school because most of the programs that differentiated Challenge from the others have been removed or modified to the point of being totally useless. The added benefit is that you will not have to commute far to get the academic rigor, which no longer exists at this school.
Submitted by parent on February 07, 2018

It used to be the finest school in the State. It was built upon a mission to inspire the brightest minds in the district! District Administration and the current Principal are dragging it down to be an average school, however, so that it can accommodate the overwhelming population within the district. It's now just another average school with a long commute to get to.
Submitted by parent on August 07, 2017

Challenge is an amazing school. Both my kids have thrived at this school, both are bright and have done well academically. One of them has health and social interaction challenges, and everyone at the school has been so incredibly supportive and helpful.
Submitted by other on December 06, 2016

Leadership and management are horrible! Please be cautious when applying to this school.
Submitted by parent on November 08, 2016

Both of my sons have thrived at Challenge. They are academically challenged and the rigorous curriculum has met their advanced needs. Most importantly, the staff cares about the WHOLE child. My boys are loved, valued, and respected for who they are beyond their academic abilities. We are proud to be part of the Challenge community and grateful for the opportunity!
Submitted by parent on October 16, 2016

The current leadership of the school is not a good fit. Many things that made the school special are changing ands parents have little to no input in the school community.
Submitted by other on August 12, 2016

my friend told me about this school ,This school is very good rate and very good school .So that I'm so interested Because my son his brain is very smart so that I'm thinking about for my son future .
Submitted by parent on November 16, 2015

My two kids attended a local elementary school for K (and one for 1st grade). When my wife and I went to help out in the 1st grade class, we saw a teacher overwhelmed by the kids who could not read, and who had no time for our kids who were reading Harry Potter under the desk and ignoring the rest of the activities going on around them. There were no enrichment activities that I could see, and the teacher had no time for the advanced or the prepared kids. Challenge gave our kids a chance to thrive and grow with their peers in an environment that encourages and, indeed, expects their best, and for that I will be forever grateful. It is not for everyone, and once they were accepted (without donations), I watched carefully for signs that they were overwhelmed and perhaps at the wrong school. Thank goodness they found their "peeps" at Challenge, but I would have moved them again if they weren't happy. As it turned out, they went from reporting 2 "good" days in a full year at the previous school, to 2 "bad" days in a full year. We have now been at Challenge for 4 years, and I could not be happier. Finally, I wish our first school had pursued streaming much more aggressively, since lumping the 6th grade level readers with the 1st grade readers, writers, and math students (regardless of their age) just makes every kid feel like they have something to hide. The hit to the kids' self esteem only happens once in streaming. In contrast, the unworkable and ineffective teaching environment created by mixing all achievement levels into one class keeps on hurting kids day after day.
Submitted by parent on September 29, 2014

This is my daughter's first year at Challenge (2nd grade) and so far we are so glad she was accepted into such a great school. I read some of the reviews about the application process and that it is unfair. I did not find this to be true. We applied for K and 1st grade. My daughter scored well on the tests and did not get a spot, but when there is a limited number of spots available, it happens. This year we were put on a wait list again, but a spot became available and we "won" it in the lottery pool of qualified applicants. It can't get much more fair than that, in my opinion. So far our kiddo is doing really well and her teachers have made sure she is comfortable and adjusts well. The opportunities given to expand young minds in the extracurricular activities, mini courses, and immersion weeks are just wonderful! I love that there are required family service hours to keep us all involved as part of a school community. Really excited for our future at this school!