Three low-performing Denver elementary schools—Amesse, Gilpin Montessori and Greenlee—are being recommended for closure under a new school district policy.

Chalkbeat Colorado reports that the district is recommending that Amesse and Greenlee be closed and replaced by a model the district deems more likely to succeed. For Gilpin, the district staff is recommending it be closed at the end of the school year and not replaced because of low enrollment projections.

The district’s new closure policy, called the School Performance Compact, was adopted by the school board last year. It evaluates low-performing schools on these criteria:

• Whether they rank in the bottom 5 percent of schools based on multiple years of school ratings and aren’t exempt from the policy because they’re in the midst of a significant intervention meant to boost performance
• Whether they failed to show an adequate amount of growth on the most recent state tests;
• And whether they scored fewer than 25 out of 40 points on a school quality review.

Schools that meet all three criteria can be recommended for restart or closure. 

All three schools also showed lower-than-average academic growth compared with other Denver elementary schools on the most recent state tests taken last spring.