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  • Writer's pictureMariel Megan Ross

Can you say IB and Gifted & Talented? Ranch View is your Sterling Ranch middle school

Located 10 minutes away, Sterling Ranch 7th and 8th grade students will attend Ranch View until Sterling Ranch's 2 dedicated middle schools are built


When the Sterling Ranch community is fully built-out, residents will enjoy not one but potentially two of their own local middle schools. The two projected middle schools will be part of the Douglas County School District, which for those of you not familiar with Colorado's school districts is not only one of the best school districts in Denver, but in the entire state.


Until there’s a critical mass of school age children in Sterling Ranch and funding becomes available, Ranch View Middle School is the designated feeder middle school for Sterling Ranch's 7th and 8th grade students.


Ranch View is located 10 minutes from Sterling Ranch in neighboring Highlands Ranch, so it’s a quick and easy drive for residents. Ranch View boasts an impressive 19 to 1 student-teacher ratio, which is among the lowest student-teacher ratios in the Douglas County school system. Also, Ranch View is located on the same campus as Sterling Ranch’s current feeder high school, ThunderRidge (more on ThunderRidge here!), which in my opinion helps students with the transition from middle school to high school.


Similar to Roxborough Primary (grades K-2 for Sterling Ranch students) and Roxborough Intermediate (grades 3-6 for Sterling Ranch students), Ranch View is an International Baccaleaureate school. And here’s the good news - every student who attends Ranch View automatically participates in the IB Program – which is called the Middle Years Program. So no applications or interviews required!


As part of the IB Program, Ranch View students are required to study English language and literature, language acquisition (Spanish or French), individuals and societies, sciences, mathematics, physical and health education, arts (both performing and visual), and technology/design. Students can also participate in electives, which vary year-to-year, but can include Chinese, orchestra and band, and digital media, among many others.


Ranch View also boasts a large Gifted & Talented Program, which I think is important given the student enrollment at Ranch View (over 900 students; the average class size is 28 students). Approximately 11% of Ranch View’s students participate in the Gifted & Talented Program, so while it’s a competitive program, there are still approximately 100 seats available.


Middle school is an important time for many students, and in my opinion it’s important for each student to find the right class with the right teachers teaching the right materials. Between the IB Program and the Gifted & Talented Program, students are exposed to high-level, rigorous academics at Ranch View, which is great!


So that's a quick peek at Ranch View. I’ll post more about Ranch View on the Sterling Ranch Roundup in the future!

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