Garfield County is split among three school districts

A common question for a family moving to Garfield County is simple: which public schools will my kids go to? The answer is not the same across the county, because Garfield County is not one school district. It is split among several.

In broad terms, the upper part of the county, around Glenwood Springs and Carbondale in the Roaring Fork valley, is served by the Roaring Fork district, which actually reaches across county lines into Eagle and Pitkin counties. The middle of the county, around Rifle, Silt, and New Castle along the I-70 corridor, is served by the Garfield district based in Rifle. The Parachute area at the west end has its own district as well.

This matters more than it might seem. School district lines do not always match town lines or county lines, and they affect which schools a home is assigned to, how school taxes are set, and where bus routes run. Two houses fairly close together can sit in different districts.

So when comparing homes, treat the school district as its own question, separate from the town and the county, and confirm it for the specific address rather than guessing from the nearest town.

To find the exact district for an address, use the Colorado Department of Education’s district maps and the districts’ own enrollment offices.