Denver Center for International Studies at Fairmon

We spent a lot of time touring schools and thinking about what would be best for our kiddo. Included in that thought process was reading the reviews from sites like this one, so I feel compelled to write this review to help others out who might be in the same boat. DCIS has been such a wonderful experience for our family so far. While it admittedly wasn’t our first choice for school choice (because we heavily considered CMAS scores in our decision making), I keep thinking of that quote “Sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.”

Our kiddo is enrolled in the dual language program and it has been fantastic so far. Our teacher is engaged, joyful, and truly cares about the class–with thoughtful, individualized strategies to meet each child’s unique needs. The school has a no homework policy, but encourages that you spend time reading to your children every night. Everyone our kiddo has interacted with so far (from the paraprofessionals to the specials teachers–gym, music, art) has been kind and supportive and created an environment where kids want to come to school. When I toured, I was impressed at the true multicultural representation throughout the school–it was the only school where diversity (including the art work in the hallways) did not feel tokenized. Our teacher is always willing to chat with us, and the school administration has been very transparent and open in prioritizing communications.

If you’re like me, you might be focusing on the CMAS scores of the schools you’re considering. Here are a few things that were helpful to me in balancing this out: the school is in the process of moving up a “color” in the UIP framework because the K-2 READ Act scores were well above the state averages. I would expect to see higher scores in CMAS this year. There has also been a shift in school leadership the new principal comes from Valdez (a high performing dual immersion school in Denver) and has created team leaders to support data driven instruction for every grade.

But last, and perhaps most important, is that the community here has been amazing. We have met so many wonderful families at drop-off/pick-up, and the vibes just feel right.

When we were touring schools, the two best pieces of advice I received from friends were 1) remember that the “best” schools (as related to rankings like the ones on this site) aren't necessarily best for your kid, and 2) you can tell how happy the staff at a school are by how friendly the people are in the front office (which, at DCIS, has always been a positive interaction). I'd definitely recommend touring the school and getting a feel for it yourself!