Steamboat Springs School District Recognized as “Accredited With Distinction” by CDE

District earns higher recognition, moving from Accredited to Accredited with Distinction in one year

Steamboat Springs, Colo. - September 3, 2025 - The Steamboat Springs School District (SSSD) has been recognized by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) with an “Accredited with Distinction” rating, the highest accreditation a district can receive in the state. This marks an improvement from last year’s “Accredited” status. Only 17 districts across Colorado received this honor, placing SSSD among the top 9% of districts statewide.

To earn this honor, districts must achieve at least 74% of possible points on the state’s performance framework. SSSD earned 75.3%, reflecting strong results in academic achievement, academic growth, and postsecondary and workforce readiness.

Performance Highlights:

• Elementary Level – 73.4% (Accredited)
• Middle School Level – 81.8% (Distinction)
• High School Level – 71.9% (Accredited)
• Districtwide Indicators:
  • Academic Achievement – 78.8% (Meets)
  • Academic Growth – 72.3% (Meets)
  • Postsecondary & Workforce Readiness – 76.0% (Meets)

"Moving from Accredited to Accredited with Distinction is a significant achievement for our district,” said Dr. Celine Wicks, Superintendent. “It is a true testament to the perseverance and resilience of our students and staff. After being Accredited last year, we are proud to see our school community’s focus on growth and excellence recognized at the state level.”

The preliminary 2025-26 ratings are available on the Performance Frameworks Results webpage or the school and district dashboard. Performance frameworks are part of the state’s accountability system and are calculated by combining student academic growth, students' academic achievement, and postsecondary and workforce readiness data, such as graduation, dropout, and college matriculation rates. 

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Media contact:
Laura Milius, Director of Communications (lmilius@ssk12.org)