Choice Works

ACE Success

ACE was founded in 2000 by a group of Denver business leaders who were determined to find solutions to curb high dropout rates among minority students in our local schools. They were concerned about the economic and social impacts that high dropout rates have on our communities.

Extensive initial research revealed that privately-funded scholarship programs not only help decrease dropout rates, but also lead to:

• Improved overall student academic performance
• Increased parental involvement
• Smaller class sizes
• Increased personalized teacher attention
• More disciplined and safer learning environments
• Reduced racial conflicts
• Reduced student delinquency

After ten years, ACE’s results have verified the power of school choice.

• The ACE class of 2010 had a graduation rate of 93%, with 100% of those graduates planning on attending college or university.

ACE scholars also excel on the ACT, a nationally-administered assessment designed to gauge student proficiency in various areas of study. The ACT is considered the most reliable indicator of college preparedness.

In 2009, ACE compared scholar test scores to scores of students enrolled in Denver Public Schools; ACE also compared scholars to students throughout Colorado.