Lake Middle School Closes Bringing New Educational Opportunities for Northwest Denver Students

In just a few days, Denver Public School students will be out for summer. The conclusion of the 2011-2012 school year also completes the final phase-out stage of Lake Middle School. This academic year the school was only occupied by 8th grade students. In 2009 the school board decided to close the school due to low academic performance. In 2009, 63.35% of Lake students received unsatisfactory ratings in science compared to 21.17% receiving unsatisfactory marks for the rest of the state; 45.83% of Lake students received unsatisfactory ratings in math compared to 17.24% for the rest of the state. These stats are reported at SchoolView.org http://www.schoolview.org/performance.asp with data from the Colorado Department of Education. The independent organization GreatSchools.org rated Lake Middle School http://www.greatschools.org/colorado/denver/462-Lake-Middle-School/ 1 out of 10. The Denver Post reported the school as ‘a failing school since 2002.’ http://www.denverpost.com/investigations/ci_20007363 When the doors close on May 29th at Lake Middle School, it doesn’t mean that the campus will be left empty. New opportunities are abound for incoming middle school students in Northwest Denver, as well as the building which was built in 1926 before the surrounding neighborhood was entirely developed. The facility, located at 1820 Lowell Blvd, is also home of Lake International School and West Denver Prep’s Lake Campus. As the ‘turnaround school,’ Lake International School is located in the same facility with a redesigned program to improve academic performance and increase graduation rates. Lake International School is an International Baccalaureate. The program is offered to students grades sixth through eighth without admissions testing. The International Baccalaureate program http://www.ibo.org/ is well regarded internationally to prepare students for college and careers. The curriculum includes language arts, humanities, technology, mathematics, sciences, arts, physical education and a second language. Lake International School offers Spanish for the second language requirement. In a message from Principal Amy Highsmith, the action plan to improve this new school is to, improve attendance rates, improve the academic progress as shown in CSAP test scores and increase parent participation. Parents might also consider West Denver Prep. The Lake Campus of West Denver Prep is a Charter School at the old Lake Middle School facility with its entrance on 19th Street. The Lake Campus has 240 students in the 6th through 7th grades, having opened it’s doors in August 2010, and expanding this past school year with a 7th grade class. It’s website announced that “In 2011, West Denver Prep’s schools ranked as four of the top five secondary schools in Denver Public Schools (DPS) on the School Performance Framework, all earning the district's highest rating of "Distinguished." Among all 137 schools evaluated, the schools ranked in the top 11” http://www.westdenverprep.org/index.php/our-results/ West Denver Prep’s school s are public charter schools allowing students to attend tuition-free without admissions test requirements. As Denver resident David Pennington recently wrote, “Either way, Highland area students stand to benefit from the phasing out of Lake Middle.” http://8z.com/articles/with-lake-middle-closure-students-can-find-future-in-west-denver-prep Parents who are researching middle school choices for their children in the Denver Public School system should be sure to attend the joint open house when it is announced for West Denver Prep and Lake International School. Written by Staci Striegnitz