Shaffer Elementary School

7961 Sangre De Cristo Road

School District

Jeffco Public Schools
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:17
Type

public

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 parent on May 22, 2024

To be clear, this is a fantastic school. The teachers are incredible and my kids got an excellent education. There aren’t many extracurricular opportunities, but I think that’s typical of elementary schools in the Denver metro. I would have given 5 stars, but the cliquey childlike PTA is about as bad (and cliche) as it gets. It’s honestly laughable, but extremely unfortunate. These cliquey women are modeling some pretty poor social behavior to their children that isn’t anything like the real world. Outside of the PTA, the school is fantastic. I’m hopeful that the new principal will neutralize the PTA and make the rest of us enjoy adult interactions moving forward.
Submitted by parent on May 09, 2024

Shaffer is an excellent school with skilled and dedicated teachers and caring administrative staff. My youngest is in Kindergarten and oldest in 3rd grade. Both have had amazing years with lots of teacher support and big learning opportunities. We have had an excellent experience here and would surely recommend to others. As far as the parents go, the fundraising responsibilities on the PTA are considerable. They pay for paras, new equipment, the leader in me program as well as a variety of other events and facility improvements. The women on the PTA spend a lot of time supporting the school, they are at the school quite a bit working together. I would encourage parents to ask how they can help rather than accusing others of being cliquey. If you do not have extra time that is fine as well - everyone is doing their best to support the school. Overall, I would highly recommend Shaffer. It is an excellent Elementary School.
Submitted by parent on May 06, 2024

I've been a parent at Shaffer Elementary since 2017, and have had the best experience every SINGLE year, without fail. My oldest started with Shaffer in Pre-K, and is about to "graduate" and we have two additional kiddos that started in later years. I can truly say our children have received the best education, with the best staff we could have ever hope for. Not sure what the other reviews are saying about the PTA. Being a non-member of this organization from the get-go, I can honestly say that the PTA has always been welcoming and open and always looking for other active participants to join and lend a hand! From the beginning, we've always been thankful for everyone at Shaffer and look forward to our other children learning + growing from these amazing educators. Five stars - ALL DAY - highly recommend!
Submitted by parent on February 08, 2024

Great school overall. As is likely in any school, there are a few bad apple teachers that you have to be cautious of. As other has mentioned, PTA is definitely cliquey so it is harder as a parent to fit in when you’re not part of the “in crowd.”
Submitted by parent on April 16, 2023

We have been very happy with Shaffer! We moved to the area from CCSD, and are so grateful we did! The teachers have been exceptional, Mr. Brasher is one-of-a-kind and passionate about his work. The only negative I can think of is the PTA. It’s cliquey and nearly impossible to get information out of. It takes a bit of time to navigate around.
Submitted by other on December 12, 2022

I went to this school through grades kindergarten- 5th Grade. When you get in trouble, the office staff treat you like you're in a military camp. Steve Soich was not meant to work in this young environment. For Special Education Team it was not helpful I did not feel ready for the next grade. Please think about your kid going to this school.
Submitted by parent on May 13, 2021

Chaos in the classroom. The teacher had difficulties to get respected. No communication between parents, teachers and hierarchy. If your kid struggles in school the teacher will help up to a certain point after she begins to yell. You discover all about your kids' problems in school at the parent/teacher conference when it's already too late. Most of the time you are guessing and hoping your kid is in good hands. What matter most is popularity and being loved. You see posters against bullying on all the walls. Why? Because bullying is everywhere. And nobody really stand against it. The kids barely have time to eat and are SO hungry after school. All is about leadership and how supportive you are for the community and the school. It's almost a competition between moms. Who will help the most? This school is a nightmare.
Submitted by parent on January 17, 2021

We have been so impressed with the staff and community at Shaffer. The teachers are well-qualified and knowledgeable. I saw intentional differentiation based on student abilities. The teachers and administration are caring and strive to know the students and parents individually. I have seen first-hand how advanced students are encouraged through more advanced concepts and skills as well as the gifted and talented program. I have also seen first-hand how teachers encourage students who are behind and tailor lessons and assignments to help them get up to speed with their peers.
Submitted by parent on October 29, 2020

To say this school was a great disappointment is to show it a great kindness. Look elsewhere if you want a positive culture with actual constructive learning opportunities for your child.
Submitted by parent on December 20, 2019

A waste of time- our special needs son continued to get more and more behind because Shaffer isn’t concerned with special needs students or extremely gifted students. The staff Is mediocre at best-and this is evident in their lack of student significant progress through out the school year in comparison to other students in CO.
Submitted by parent on June 04, 2019

My experience with this school as been nothing but positive. We recently moved to this area due to the schools in the area and Shaffer did not disappoint.
Submitted by parent on June 28, 2018

I cannot say enough about Shaffer and how amazing it is!!! This school deserves the highest ranking possible! They are amazing and it is an absolute joy to bring my children every day. I would absolutely recommend this school! Also, the preschool is beyond amazing!!! Mrs DeDe is one of the best teachers I have ever met!! She is efficient, keeps control of the classroom and keeps the creativity flowing!
Submitted by parent on October 11, 2017

Awful, horrid, to just get basic assessments and rights for my kids, the immediate admin is sexist, judgmental, and very limited in thinking. Never ever put your kids there if you want them to want anything for themselves in the future except mediocrity and rudeness. Cant believe the awful Amy Hives and Jeremy Nrasher rules and that theu are allowed to impact children. Hope i can save amother caring parent the time.
Submitted by parent on May 24, 2016

We have been at Shaffer for many years now and love it! We appreciate the target clubs that challenge my children when they need more speciailized education which seems to address their ALP needs very well. We have a new principal this year who has been amazing and very involved with the students. I highly recommend Shaffer to prospective parents.
Submitted by parent on November 25, 2014

Love my school. We have been there since Kindergarten. My kids have always had good teachers and often had great teachers. The parent involvement and extracurricular activities are great. The trend is great also, with many thing improving in the way of collaboration and transparency. The projects and opportunities my kids have had are top notch, esp. in 4th and 5th grade.
Submitted by parent on September 20, 2013

We've been a Shaffer family for years. I am always amazed at what an involved group of parents there are. There's a lottery to be able to chaperone on field trips, so many parents are willing to help. The teachers are, for the most part, great. There have been a few bad apples over the years, but they are addressed appropriately. Another thing we like about the school is that it pulls from several nearby neighborhoods, which lends to diversity. It's not all one type of family that attends, there are lots of different family situations. We considered puling our kids and sending them through the gifted program, but after talking with many parents and the principal, we decided to stay put. The teachers are so willing to challenge your kiddos within the classroom. Learning to work with all different types of people is what the 'real world' is like, anyway.
Submitted by parent on March 11, 2013

I moved my child to a different school down the street. In kindergarten(a private k we paid for) my daughter was the role model student. She was very smart, well-behaved, and would help wherever you needed her to. At this school my daughter all of a sudden started having behavior issues. Literally out of the blue. She tested for the gifted and talented program and tested out of the regular school work. She was WAY ahead of where she needed to be. She was suppose to be put on an advanced learning plan and the teacher did nothing. My daughter lost most of what she had as far as academics and behavior. I'm so sad I let her finish the entire school year at this school instead of moving her. The principle was atrocious to work with she is not there for the children what-so-ever. My daughter is at a new school just a few miles away and the difference is mind blowing. To be fair my daughter only completed 1st grade at this school so my review is based only on 1 year. I have seen more than one family from last year at our new school. I can only imagine why.
Submitted by parent on October 03, 2012

The school is clean and although I do not feel my child is being bullied or physically abused, the curriculum or lack there of is atrocious! This is our first year in any Jefferson County school and we are extrememely disappointed. My son is in the 2nd grade and doing work he did in Kindergarten in our last school. The teacher is nice and tries, but she is a victim of the school district as we are. I looked into moving him to another district, but he didn't want to because staying at Shaffer has allowed him to do before school programs like Karate and Foriegn Language. But, those are offered by outside companies that come in and teach, not the school. I have had to adpopt a home school curriculum at hope to pick up the slack from the school. I look at Shaffer as nothing more than public daycare. Atleast he gets to socialize, that's about all he is getting out this school along with the extracurriculars. If you have exprememly low expectations for your child's education, send them here. We will probably be leaving after this year...sadly!
Submitted by parent on September 25, 2012

Our kids had attended shaffer for two years when we decided to withdraw them and choose a safer learning environment. Friends of ours withdrew their children after just one month. Overcrowded and very low expectations for academic achievement and social behavior. Administration and faculty we experienced need much improvement in leadership and social skills. We agree with slander among faculty of student's personal information being an issue here. We also agree with bullying comments; both among students and unfortunately, some faculty directed towards the students daily. The administration seems to have lost control over the years from what we have gathered.
Submitted by parent on August 28, 2012

Accusing teachers of bullying students is crazy? Your comment is crazy. Why would anyone choose to express their grief about a school they place their trust in for the care of their own child and fabricate? Please, spend your time investigating how to change the hostile environment rather then defend a broken system. There are specific teachers in this school that spread malicious rumors about children's parents and about the children to other parents and their children creating almost a war environment. Despicable.