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In 2004, Colorado had 80 of these specialized programs known as facility schools. Now there are just 30 that serve an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 children a year. A single school serves all of western Colorado. On the Front Range, another school is set to close soon.
Colorado is racing to save the schools that serve children whose home districts can’t or won’t meet their intense needs. This is part 1 in a four-part COLab, Chalkbeat, Colorado Sun and KFF Health News series examining Colorado's collapsing system of schools that serve students with intense mental and behavioral health needs.
Parents pay the price in lost jobs, and children pay the price in squandered potential.
Colorado is racing to save the schools that serve children whose home districts can’t or won’t meet their intense needs.
In 2004, Colorado had 80 facility schools. Now there are just 30. Here’s what this means for the thousands of students and families who rely on these schools as a last resort.