Durango School District Home

We help them find their path to success
 
Portrait of a Graduate
  • 95%
    Graduation rate at Durango High School
  • 29
    Home languages spoken by students
  • 4
    Schools awarded Governor’s Distinguished Improvement
  • 20%
    CMAS test scores rank in top 20% of all Colorado Schools
Durango High School grads

About Us

Welcome to Durango School District (DSD). We strive to create a learning environment where all students own their learning, act on their learning, and impact their community. We provide learning opportunities where students develop their critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and communication skills. 
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Students examine seedling
Where we’re located
Durango School District map

District News

Parenting series: October 2025 classes + newsletter on Bullying Prevention

Need help in supporting your child's well-being? We are offering FREE live webinars on Monday-Thursday evenings throughout the school year, and you can always watch previously recorded classes on your own time by visiting the Cook Center's full content library. Live webinar topics in October include Supporting Your Child After Trauma, Emotional Regulation, Tools to Support Your Child's Mental Health, Everyday Happiness, and many more.
Bravo Award winner Jenny Killins

This week's Bravo Award winner: Jenny Killins

Throughout each school year, DSD employees nominate their colleagues for Bravo Awards, an honor that recognizes faculty and staff who demonstrate Portrait of a Graduate attributes as they go above and beyond for students and the district.
Durango School District Career Fair, October 9, 2025, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

DSD Career Fair is Oct. 9

Durango School District (DSD—formerly 9-R) is hosting a Career Fair on Thursday, Oct. 9, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the District Administration Office (281 Sawyer Drive). Community members are invited to explore a wide range of career opportunities that support students and schools across the district.
YouTube thumbnail with students readying their violins to play.

A look inside Needham's orchestra class

Last week, we visited Needham Elementary School (NES), where the after-school orchestra filled the halls with music. We sat down with NES Music Teacher Hannah Britt, who describes students picking up an instrument for the first time—and the confidence they gain as their skills grow.
The words

Fall Break is Oct. 3-6: No school

Fall Break is Friday, Oct. 3, through Monday, Oct. 6, and Durango School District (DSD—formerly 9-R) schools will be closed. Classes will resume Tuesday, Oct. 7. Enjoy your long weekend!
A group of adults and students stand together with certificates during a meeting

Five high school students join the Board of Education

Durango School District welcomed five new student board members at the Sept. 23 Board of Education meeting. The high school students were officially sworn in and will share their perspectives throughout the school year.
Bravo Award winner Josh Perdue

This week's Bravo Award winner: Josh Perdue

Throughout each school year, DSD employees nominate their colleagues for Bravo Awards, an honor that recognizes faculty and staff who demonstrate Portrait of a Graduate attributes as they go above and beyond for students and the district.
Board of Education Meeting: September 23, 2025

School Board meets Sept. 23

The DSD Board of Education will meet for a Regular Session on Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 5:30 p.m. at the Impact Career Innovation Center (2410 Main Ave., on the Durango High School campus).
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graduates

Our Mission

The mission of Durango School District is to ensure each student develops the skills and attributes for lifelong learning and has the ability to compete and contribute in the global community, by guaranteeing equitable educational opportunities in a safe and healthy environment.
Strategic Plan

What people say about us

Eduardo Gonzalez headshot

PARENT

“My kids have thrived in Durango schools because of the quality of instruction. The teachers in these schools do life-changing work.”

– Eduardo Gonzalez, parent of middle school student
Olivia Cruz, Headshot

TEACHER

“I get to work in a supportive environment with empathetic people who love what they do, and who genuinely care about student success.”

– Olivia Cruz, High School Science Teacher
Michaela Richardson headshot

STUDENT

“I have so many opportunities, and I have come to love school. Now I want to inspire others, and be on the Board to be that person that others can look up to.”

– Michaela Richardson, high school student and Student Board Member
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Superintendent

Superintendent's Message

Welcome to beautiful Durango and La Plata County! Our schools – and our community – are committed to ensuring all students reach proficiency in all content areas as well as have a high level of social-emotional well-being. Our primary objective in the Durango School District is to help every student achieve their life's purpose through Portrait of a Graduate. This is our district's "north star." It inspires students to find their Ikigai. This is a Japanese concept that incorporates four essential criteria: what you love (your passion), what the world needs (your mission), what you are good at (your vocation), and what you can get paid for (your profession). East meets West with this ancient philosophy in a modern mountain town.
Meet our district leaders

Universal Calendar

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Engineer Mountain in fall

Quality of Life

Durango is a beautiful place to live and work. It is located at 6,512 feet elevation in Southwest Colorado near the Four Corners region. Families who live here enjoy a historic steam train, ski resort, rivers, vibrant downtown, bike trails, sky-high “fourteener” mountains, and four distinct seasons with an average of 266 sunny days per year. We welcome new families and new staff members, and we offer excellent benefits and competitive salaries. 
Join our team
Teacher Elfreida Begay

Land Acknowledgement

We respectfully acknowledge that Durango School District is located on lands and territories taken from the Núuchiu (Ute) people. This land is also the ancestral home of or served as a site of trade, gathering, or healing for Apache, Pueblo, Diné, and other nations. We recognize and honor these peoples and nations as traditional stewards of this land and water and respect their enduring relationship with it.
Listen to the land acknowledgement in Diné Bizaad (Navajo language), spoken by Elfreida Begay

Accessibility Statement

It is the goal of Durango School District that the information on this website be accessible to individuals with visual, hearing, or cognitive disabilities. Good faith efforts are being made to ensure that our website complies with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0.
 
Most pages on our site are available in HTML format, which can be read by screen readers. Some documents are in Adobe PDF format, requiring Adobe Acrobat Reader, which can be downloaded for free from the Adobe website. Additionally, some documents are in Google Docs and Google Forms. Most modern browsers and screen readers can access Google-based documents. More information about Google web products accessibility can be found on the Google Accessibility website.
 
To ensure accessibility for everyone in our community, including those with disabilities, Durango School District is taking the following steps:
 
* We are actively identifying and addressing accessibility barriers across our websites and digital platforms.
* We request accessibility documentation (such as VPATs – Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates) from vendors whose digital tools or content are used on our websites.
* We work with vendors and service providers to ensure they are taking steps toward full compliance with WCAG and Section 504 requirements.
* We are committed to ongoing staff training and continuous website improvement.
* We regularly review our digital content to align with the Colorado Digital Accessibility Act (C.R.S. 24-34-104) and the latest applicable standards.
 
If you are unable to access any page or document on our site, please contact us at [email protected]. Include the webpage or document URL, your name, email address, and phone number. We will provide the information in an alternative format and work to resolve the issue. Alternatively, you may call the district's main information line at (970) 247-5411 and ask to speak with someone in the Communications Department. Include the location of the webpage/document, your name, email address, and phone number so we can provide the information in another format, and address the issue.

Learn more about the district's accessibility compliance plan and progress reports.