Time Capsule

Woodland Park, Colorado is located approximately 20 miles west of Colorado Springs, on U.S. Highway 24 at the upper end of Ute Pass.

1890

This two-story frame school was built for grades 1-12 in the fall of 1890.

The original school was a two-story, white frame building with two teachers built at the height of the timber-cutting boom and at the beginning of the Cripple Creek Gold Rush. The town was named Manitou Park and had “probably 1,500 to 2,000 people”, according to the November 18, 1887 issue of the Weekly Gazette. The settlement was always bustling and busy because there was a lot of business from the lumber mills and mining camps. As business in the area began decreasing people started moving away and soon only one teacher and one classroom was needed.

1918

Woodland Park School District voters approved a Bond Issue shortly after World War I and, with government aid, constructed a brick school building containing four classrooms and a large central stage where many community functions were held.During this period, the District offered Kindergarten through 10th grade in its own facilities.Students in grades 11 and 12 attended class in Manitou Springs.

1921

Woodland Park School Bus

A hot lunch program was started as a parent volunteer project.

The first school bus began operation and ran north to Manitou Park.

1924

The school was consolidated with four other districts: the Edlowe District located three miles west of Woodland Park; Eisweth on the property now known as Paint Pony Ranch; Crystola; and the pink schoolhouse located near present Manitou Park. At this time the town was beginning to grow again and three teachers were needed. The little white schoolhouse in Edlowe was brought in and placed just north of the original school. The small Edlowe school housed the primary grades and the remainder was divided into the other two classrooms.

Teachers and students attending Woodland Park School in April 1925.

1926

The District’s first graduation with all 12 grades represented.

1935-1938

The gymnasium at the Midland Avenue site was constructed and two more classrooms were added.

Midland School in 1940.

1942

The District enrolled 107 students.

1946

The Divide School (District 6) was brought into the District.

1955

A new grade school (the east building at the old Middle School on Midland Avenue) was built. The two existing buildings were joined to become the District’s junior-senior high at about the same time the high school was accredited.

1959

Teller County residents voted to reduce to two Districts: Cripple Creek-Victor Re-1 and Woodland Park Re-2, which added the Midland and Florissant schools to the Woodland Park School District.
The first kindergarten class was held in Faith Lutheran Church.

1964

The pace of growth began to accelerate when a new Junior-Senior High School opened on the Central Campus on Baldwin Street and the older buildings on Midland Avenue became elementary facilities. The new Junior-Senior High School was designed to accommodate some 285 students.

Gateway Elementary School

1970

Woodland Park Elementary (now Gateway Elementary) opened on the Central Campus of Baldwin Avenue. The old school buildings on Midland Avenue became a Junior High school. The Junior-Senior High School then housed only senior high school students.

1971

A 7,600 square foot, two-story metal building was added, providing band and music rooms and a stage as well as expanding the seating in the gymnasium.

Current picture of Woodland Park High School building

Woodland Park High School today

1975

A new Junior High School building (now Woodland Park High School) was constructed on the Central Campus. The old school buildings became a 4th and 5th grade and later a 5th and 6th grade Middle School.

1984

The number of students reached nearly 2,000 and some of the schools were literally bursting at the seams. Kindergarten was held in a rented building near the Central Campus on Baldwin Avenue. The District was forced to rent administrative office space on Highway 24 and rearrange the Junior and Senior High facilities.

Columbine Elementary School

1986

The District held a successful Bond Issue and constructed a new Elementary School (now Columbine Elementary). The construction of this facility provided the space required for the District to move the 5th grade from the old Middle School and Kindergarten students from a rented building. For the first time in many years the District could now operate its elementary program in traditional Kindergarten through 5th grade facilities.

With the construction of Columbine Elementary, the original Woodland Park Elementary was renamed Gateway Elementary. The interior of this building was completely reconfigured. A new addition at the north end of the building provided for an enlarged gymnasium and music room. With construction of a new cafeteria and kitchen in this addition, the children would no longer have to climb the steps to the high school building for lunch.

The construction program included a classroom addition for the 6th grade students and the opportunity to begin the implementation of the new 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Middle School educational program.

Summit Elementary School

1991

The product of the successful Bond Issue is the facilities of today to include the construction of Summit Elementary in Divide and the Middle School on Kelley’s Road. Summit Elementary provided a long-awaited facility for the patrons in the western part of the District.

Woodland Park Middle School

1993

Summit Elementary and the Middle School opened in fall 1993.
The move of the Middle School in to the new building provided remodeled space for the District Administration offices as well as growth space for the High School.

Woodland Park School District Administration

The District no longer had to rent space for administrative offices which provided valuable additional funds for educational needs and other capital projects.

2001

Both enrollment and educational programs continued to grow from 1990 to 2001. The District experienced phenomenal growth from 2,311 students in 1990 to over 3,200 students in 2001…up an astonishing 38.5%!
The Middle School and High School were both over capacity resulting in severe overcrowding situations. Although a Kindergarten through 5th grade facility was built in Divide, the western portion of the District continued to grow.

2004

The District successfully passed a $1.1 million mill levy override to support staff along with a $14.6 million bond issue giving the District updated buildings.

The view from the Woodland Park High School, Gateway Elementary, District Administration campus

2016

The community passed a 1.09% city sales tax increase which provides on-going financial support to our District. This generates approximately an additional $2.1 million annually and is specifically targeted for spending on: Salaries & Benefits, COP Lease Payments (Mill Levy Reduction); Facilities & Maintenance; Technology; and Innovative Programming & Post-Secondary.

2019

Received a $335,000 grant from the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to increase safety in our schools by building security vestibules and purchasing a new security software.
Launched the new website which bring more current school information to everyone's fingertips; is ADA Compliant; looks more visually attractive; and created as an easy to use communication hub for our community.