Can I use Delta County's school score to choose a house?

No. Use the Delta County school score as a first-pass county screen, then verify the exact district, attendance boundary, transfer rules, and grade pathway for any address you are considering.

Does SchoolsByCounty confirm school attendance boundaries in Delta County?

No. SchoolsByCounty publishes NCES and Census-backed public-school records. Attendance zones, magnet eligibility, charter lotteries, transportation, and transfer rules must be confirmed with local districts.

How should parents compare public schools in Delta County?

Start with the 18 listed public schools and 1 district entry, then compare similar grade bands and confirm the address-level rules locally.

Delta County Schools & Education

Name: Delta County, Colorado Education Data
Creator: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

Delta County, Colorado

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

School Score

18/100

Percentile-style score

Score Band

Lower Signal

Graduation Rate

83.0%

National avg 87.5%

Education Statistics

Graduation Rate

83.0%

National avg 87.5%

State avg 83.1%

Per-Pupil Spending

$6,167

National avg $13,239

State avg $7,447

School Score

18/100

Percentile-style score

State avg 36/100

State Score Position

#53

of 63 counties by score

Education Data Brief: Delta County

Measured School Summary

Delta County faces educational challenges with a school score of 18/100 and a graduation rate of 83.0%, falling below typical benchmarks.

Funding Context

At $6,167 per pupil, Delta County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.

Neighbor Context

Its school score is 51% below the Colorado average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 0.1 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 17% lower than the state norm.

School Data Brief

How to read Delta County before comparing districts

County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.

Local context that changes the interpretation

18 public schools and 1 district are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.

Overall screen

18/100

Lower measured signal. Ranks #53 of 63 Colorado counties with school score data.

Completion

83.0%

0.1 pts below the state average

Funding context

$6,167

$1,280 below the state average

School coverage

1 district represented in the county school list.

Start with measured county context

The county-level signal is lower, so review individual schools and local records before interpreting the score. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.

Check the local school mix

Delta County has 18 public schools across 1 district, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.

Verify local rules

Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.

View Public Schools Compare Counties

Parent decision brief

What Delta County school data means before you move

County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.

Dominant-district county

Delta County Joint District No. 50 carries most of the listed public-school system, with 18 of 18 schools. Start there, then verify whether your target address sits inside that district slice.

State position

#53

of 63 Colorado counties with school score data. The county score is 18 points below the state average.

Data confidence

Usable

3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.

K-12 continuity check

These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.

Delta County Joint District No. 50

Elementary to high school visible

4,592 students

Elementary 8Middle 3High 6Other 1

18 listed schools in this county slice.

District reality check

Delta County Joint District No. 50 is the largest listed district slice, with 18 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.

What the data cannot tell you

NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.

Questions to ask before choosing an address

Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Delta County?

Which attendance zones, transfer rules, and transportation policies apply inside the local district?

What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?

Which charter, magnet, or virtual options require a lottery, application window, separate transportation plan, or address eligibility check?

Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?

Education Overview

About Schools in Delta County, Colorado

This context is screened for neutral school-data wording and should be read alongside the current metrics on this page. It is not school advice.

Comprehensive Infrastructure for the Western Slope

Delta County features a robust network of 18 public schools serving 4,592 students. The system includes eight elementary, three middle, and six high schools, providing diverse options for all ages. Two charter schools operate within the county, accounting for roughly 11% of the total school choices.

Unified Excellence in District 50

Delta County Joint District No. 50 manages all 18 schools and 4,592 students in the region. This unified district approach allows for shared resources across the county’s various towns. The district also supports three alternative schools to ensure every student has a pathway to graduation.

A Blend of Towns and Trails

The county offers a mix of 11 town-based schools and 7 rural schools, reflecting its varied landscape. The average school size is 255 students, with Delta High School being the largest at 628. Schools like Garnet Mesa Elementary (488 students) provide a mid-sized, suburban feel within a rural county.

School Overview

Total Schools

in Delta County

Reported Enrollment

4,592

18 schools reporting

School Districts

district

Charter Schools

11% of total

School Level Breakdown

Elementary8

Middle3

High6

Other1

1 School District in Delta County

Delta County Joint District No. 50

Guide

18 schools

4,592 students enrolled

Open district guide

18 Public Schools in Delta County

Sorted by reported enrollment. Every NCES public school remains listed here; no school-level profile pages are included in the current generated coverage for this county.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Search schools

Level

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Showing 18 of 18 matching schools

Public schools in Delta County, including district, location, profile availability, grades, type, and enrollment.
School Name	Profile	District	Location	Grades	Type / Flags	Reported Enrollment
Delta High School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	9–12	High	628
Delta Middle School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	6–8	Middle	508
Garnet Mesa Elementary School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	KG–5	Primary	488
Lincoln Elementary School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	KG–5	Primary	444
Cedaredge Elementary School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	CEDAREDGE, 81413Town: Distant	PK–5	Primary	352
Hotchkiss Elementary School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	HOTCHKISS, 81419Rural: Remote	PK–8	Primary	316
Cedaredge High School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	CEDAREDGE, 81413Rural: Fringe	9–12	High	296
North Fork High School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	HOTCHKISS, 81419Rural: Remote	9–12	High	296
Paonia K-8	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	PAONIA, 81428Rural: Remote	PK–8	Primary	251
Backpack Early Learning Academy	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	PK	Other	194
Cedaredge Middle School	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	CEDAREDGE, 81413Rural: Fringe	6–8	Middle	188
Vision Charter Academy K-8	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	KG–8	Charter	172
North Fork Montessori @ Crawford	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	CRAWFORD, 81415Rural: Remote	PK–6	Primary	128
North Fork School of Integrated Studies	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	PAONIA, 81428Rural: Remote	PK–6	Primary	114
Vision Charter Academy	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	9–12	Charter	97
Grand Mesa Choice Academy	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	7–12	Alternative	81
Delta Academy of Applied Learning	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	5–8	Alternative	25
Delta Online Learning Academy	Record	Delta County Joint District No. 50	DELTA, 81416Town: Distant	6–12	Virtual	14

Delta High School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record9–12High628 students

Delta Middle School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record6–8Middle508 students

Garnet Mesa Elementary School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

RecordKG–5Primary488 students

Lincoln Elementary School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

RecordKG–5Primary444 students

Cedaredge Elementary School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

CEDAREDGE, 81413 / Town: Distant

RecordPK–5Primary352 students

Hotchkiss Elementary School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

HOTCHKISS, 81419 / Rural: Remote

RecordPK–8Primary316 students

Cedaredge High School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

CEDAREDGE, 81413 / Rural: Fringe

Record9–12High296 students

North Fork High School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

HOTCHKISS, 81419 / Rural: Remote

Record9–12High296 students

Paonia K-8

Delta County Joint District No. 50

PAONIA, 81428 / Rural: Remote

RecordPK–8Primary251 students

Backpack Early Learning Academy

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

RecordPKOther194 students

Cedaredge Middle School

Delta County Joint District No. 50

CEDAREDGE, 81413 / Rural: Fringe

Record6–8Middle188 students

Vision Charter Academy K-8

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

RecordKG–8Charter172 students

North Fork Montessori @ Crawford

Delta County Joint District No. 50

CRAWFORD, 81415 / Rural: Remote

RecordPK–6Primary128 students

North Fork School of Integrated Studies

Delta County Joint District No. 50

PAONIA, 81428 / Rural: Remote

RecordPK–6Primary114 students

Vision Charter Academy

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record9–12Charter97 students

Grand Mesa Choice Academy

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record7–12Alternative81 students

Delta Academy of Applied Learning

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record5–8Alternative25 students

Delta Online Learning Academy

Delta County Joint District No. 50

DELTA, 81416 / Town: Distant

Record6–12Virtual14 students

Education Funding Detail

Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure

$6,167

State avg $7,447

Compare Nearby Counties

Review Delta County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.

Open Compare

Browse Public Schools

See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.

View Schools

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Colorado counties have the highest graduation rates?

Pitkin County (97.0%), Rio Blanco County (93.2%), and Routt County (93.2%) currently lead Colorado among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.

What is per-pupil spending like in Colorado?

Across Colorado counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $7,447. The highest current county values are Mineral County ($13,728), San Juan County ($13,639), and Hinsdale County ($13,446). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

How should I read the school score in Delta County?

Delta County has a school score of 18/100, which is a lower measured signal in this county-level index. This score is calculated from available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data, with school-level records shown separately below.

What is the graduation rate in Delta County?

The high school graduation rate in Delta County is 83.0%, which is below the national average of 87.5%. This figure is based on NCES district-level data for public high schools in the county.

How much does Delta County spend per student?

Delta County spends $6,167 per pupil annually on public education, based on NCES district finance data. Current operating spending per fall enrollment, including instruction, support services, administration, transportation, and operations. It excludes capital outlays and debt service in the SchoolsByCounty methodology.

Frequently Asked Questions

Schools in Delta County, Colorado — FAQ

What does the school system look like in Delta County, Colorado?

What are the major school districts in Delta County, Colorado?

What is the school experience like in Delta County?

Counties with Similar School Profile

Weld County

Colorado

+1 pts

18/100

School score

Adams County

Colorado

+2 pts

20/100

School score

Yuma County

Colorado

+3 pts

21/100

School score

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated May 13, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

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