Colorado Department of Education

What Colorado Department of Education does

The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) is the statutorily designated state education agency for Colorado, responsible for statewide K-12 public education oversight under Colorado state law and federal education legislation including the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The agency serves 179 public school districts, 262 charter schools, 21 Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), and 2 Charter Collaboratives, governing the education of 881,065 students across 1,900 schools in FY2024-2025 and tracking total K-12 expenditure of $14.836 billion. Functionally, CDE develops and implements academic standards, administers statewide assessments, issues and renews educator licenses, runs school accountability and accreditation frameworks, distributes state and federal funding (including Title I, Title III, IDEA, and READ Act), coordinates special education and English learner services, and provides financial transparency reporting under HB14-1292. Governance rests with the Colorado State Board of Education; day-to-day operations are led by a Commissioner of Education.

CDE's technology platform comprises five interconnected core systems: Data Pipeline, which aggregates student enrollment, assessment, staffing, and financial data from all districts; SchoolView, the public performance and accountability reporting environment; the Financial Transparency platform, which publishes per-school/district revenue and expenditure data; COOL (Colorado Online Licensing), the statewide educator licensing system operated in partnership with RANDA Solutions; and RANDA/COPMS, the state model performance management system for educator evaluations. A Moodle-based learning management system supports professional development delivery. The platforms are described as internal operational tools rather than public/developer-facing APIs, with no API, SDK, or MCP exposure in the source data.

As a state government entity under the State of Colorado, CDE does not sell products or services and has no traditional revenue mechanics. Funding flows from state legislative appropriations and federal education grants. Distribution is exclusively within Colorado through direct statutory mandate to districts, charter schools, and BOCES, supplemented by digital platform delivery and a 21-BOCES cooperative-services channel. Customer segments are horizontal: public school districts and charter schools are primary, with BOCES and individual educators/administrators as secondary segments.

Name

Colorado Department of Education

Legal name

Colorado Department of Education

Website

https://cde.state.co.us

Company type

Public

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) is the statutorily designated state education agency overseeing K-12 public education for all 179 districts, 262 charter schools, and 21 BOCES in Colorado, operating platforms for educator licensing, statewide data collection, performance reporting, and financial transparency, funded through state appropriations and federal grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

State Education Administration

NAICS

Administration of Education Programs (923110)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial Education Department Administration (BPAIABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

National/State Curriculum & Standards Authorities (EDADAEAA)

Keywords

• K-12 education oversight
• Educator licensing systems
• School performance data
• State education standards
• Financial transparency reporting

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Colorado Department of Education is the state education agency that oversees K-12 public education across Colorado, providing statewide academic standards, assessments, educator licensing, school accountability frameworks, financial transparency, and federal program administration. It operates digital platforms including Data Pipeline, SchoolView, COOL, RANDA/COPMS, and Moodle LMS to serve 179 public school districts, 262 charter schools, 21 BOCES, and educators statewide.

Product overview

The Colorado Department of Education operates a portfolio of interconnected platforms and services for K-12 education administration. The core infrastructure includes SchoolView for data exploration and reporting, the Data Pipeline for aggregating student and district data, and the Financial Transparency website for school finance visibility. Educator-facing systems comprise COOL (Colorado Online Licensing) for licensure management and RANDA for educator performance evaluations. Professional development is delivered through a Moodle-based LMS. These platforms serve districts, schools, educators, families, and state-level oversight functions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SchoolView: A data visualization and reporting platform providing school and district performance data, financial transparency, and accountability information for Colorado K-12 education.
• Colorado Online Licensing (COOL)
• Office of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education (CLDE)
• Office of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education

Products and services

• SchoolView A statewide data exploration and reporting platform providing school and district performance frameworks, financial transparency, and accountability information for Colorado K-12 education stakeholders, including families, educators, and the public.
• Colorado Online Licensing (COOL) An online licensing system for Colorado educator licensure, certification, renewals, endorsements, and status checks, operated in partnership with RANDA Solutions and serving teachers, administrators, and education professionals statewide.
• RANDA Performance Management System (COPMS) A performance management and educator effectiveness platform used for the Colorado State Model Performance Management System, supporting educator evaluations and professional growth tracking for school districts and BOCES.
• Data Pipeline A statewide data collection and management system that aggregates student enrollment, assessment, staffing, and financial data from Colorado school districts, including snapshot collections, periodic collections, and interchange systems.
• Financial Transparency for Colorado Schools A public-facing website displaying revenue and expenditure information for every school, district, and BOCES in Colorado, updated annually with prior fiscal year data per HB14-1292 and ESSA requirements.
• Moodle LMS for Professional Development A Moodle-based learning management system used by CDE to deliver online professional development courses and continuing education opportunities for Colorado educators.

Quantifiable outcome

• 881,065 students served across 1,900 schools
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Texas Education Agency: Texas's state education agency overseeing K-12 public education, academic standards, accountability frameworks, and school finance for the state's districts. Directly comparable to CDE in mission and structure.
• New York State Education Department: New York's state education department responsible for K-12 standards, assessments, educator certification, and school accountability. Operates an analogous regulatory and digital platform model to CDE.
• Pennsylvania Department of Education: Pennsylvania's state education agency overseeing K-12 public education, academic standards, educator preparation, and school finance. Comparable peer in structure and regulatory scope to CDE.
• Florida Department of Education: Florida's state education agency managing K-12 accountability, school grading, educator certification, and federal program administration. Directly comparable in functional scope to CDE.
• Michigan Department of Education: Michigan's state education agency overseeing K-12 public schools, academic standards, educator certification, and federal program administration. Comparable in role and responsibilities to CDE.
• Ohio Department of Education and Workforce: Ohio's state education agency overseeing K-12 schools, accountability report cards, educator licensing, and federal program administration. Directly comparable in mission and services to CDE.
• California Department of Education: California's state education agency with analogous K-12 oversight, standards setting, assessment administration, educator licensing, and federal program administration. Comparable in scope to CDE and the largest state education agency in the U.S.
• Illinois State Board of Education: Illinois's state education agency governing K-12 policy, educator licensure, school accountability, and federal program administration. Directly comparable to CDE in structure and oversight scope.
• Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction: Washington state's elected-superintendent-led education agency managing K-12 accountability, educator certification, and statewide data reporting. Similar functional scope to CDE.

Broad incumbents

• U.S. Department of Education: The federal education authority that administers Title I, IDEA, ESSA, and Title IX — the federal frameworks CDE implements at the state level. A broader incumbent that sets the regulatory floor CDE operationalizes.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

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• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/codepted
• Instagraminstagram.com/codepted
• TikToktiktok.com/@codepted

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Colorado Department of Education