Barney Ford Elementary School

• Location: Denver, Colorado
• Web site: www.denver.k12.co.us/schools/Elementary/Ford/Ford_Home.html
• Principal: Wanda Lenox
• Featured teacher: George E. Jackson, III, drama teacher
• Grades: PreK–5
• Number of students: 628
• Number of faculty: 40
• Demographic information: Eighty-eight percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Almost 35 percent of students are English-language learners. The student population is 55.4 percent Hispanic, 36 percent African-American, 4.3 percent Caucasian, 2.9 percent Asian, and 1.4 percent Native American.

Barney Ford Elementary is named after a former slave who, in addition to becoming educated, became active politically and financially in the 19th-century Colorado territory. This tradition of achievement is central to the vision and success of the school.

Barney Ford Elementary is focused on improving students’ reading, writing, and math skills by using research-based and teacher-tested strategies such as Reading Recovery, Success in Early Reading, and Six-Trait Writing. Teachers are trained in the Step Up To Write program, which has helped many schools improve student writing by concentrating on organization and word choice. Students have opportunities to participate in a wide range of activities, such as an annual Shakespeare Festival and weekly activities in drama, choir, art, computer skills, and physical education.

Information provided by Barney Ford Elementary School. Current as of February 2002.