George Washington High School

What George Washington High School does

George Washington High School (GWHS) is a public high school located at 655 South Monaco Parkway in Denver, Colorado, operated by the Denver Public Schools (DPS) district. The school serves students in grades 9-12 through tuition-free enrollment managed via the DPS SchoolChoice process and Parent Portal. Its academic portfolio centers on three pillars: the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program (the longest-running IB program in Colorado, established in 1968), standard and honors college-prep coursework, and the DPS CareerConnect program offering BusinessConnect, CreativeConnect, and STEMConnect pathways with work-based learning components.

The school delivers a broad set of co-curricular student services operated through strategic partnerships: The Pulse (a Denver Health school-based health clinic opened January 2022, offering free medical, dental, and mental health services to all DPS students), the Success Center (housing counselors, a psychologist, and a social worker), the Future Center (Denver Scholarship Foundation college advisors supporting 9-12th graders and scholarship access), the GWHS Food Pantry (with Food Bank of the Rockies mobile pantry support and alumni-funded Kobu Foundation break-basket distributions), plus Speech and Debate, Fine Arts, JROTC, AVID, student journalism, and athletics. The technology backbone consists of Schoology (LMS), Google Workspace for Education, and the DPS Infinite Campus Parent Portal.

The business model is government-funded public education with no tuition or fees charged to families. Revenue flows from DPS district allocations (local tax revenue, state education funding, and federal sources) rather than commercial sales. Supplemental programmatic capacity is funded through nonprofit partners (DSF, Denver Health, City Year, Food Bank of the Rockies, Kobu Foundation) and parent-organization fundraising (PTSO, George Washington Patriots Care, Be Inspired Annual Fund, Friends of IB Scholars Foundation). Marketing and community engagement are conducted through the Weekly Roundup newsletter, Patriot Post updates, Instagram (@gwhsdenver), X/Twitter (@GWHS_Denver), the school website, PTSO events, and the Collaborative School Committee. GWHS is not a commercial enterprise and operates as a government educational institution under DPS governance.

Name

George Washington High School

Legal name

George Washington High School

Website

https://gwhs.dpsk12.org

Company type

Public

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

George Washington High School is a tuition-free public high school in Denver, Colorado, operated by Denver Public Schools. It serves grades 9-12 with the longest-running IB Diploma Program in Colorado, CareerConnect pathways, and on-site health, counseling, and college-advising services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Secondary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public High Schools (EDAJAAAD)

Keywords

• Public secondary education
• College preparatory programs
• International baccalaureate curriculum
• Career technical education
• Student support services

Headquarters

HQ city

DENVER, Colorado

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Public School Funding: Government-funded public education through Denver Public Schools district funding, supported by local tax revenue and state education funding

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

George Washington High School (GWHS) is a public high school within Denver Public Schools providing tuition-free secondary education to students in grades 9-12. Its core academic offerings include the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program (the longest-running in Colorado, established 1968), the DPS CareerConnect program with Business, Creative, and STEM pathways, and standard/honors college-prep coursework. The school supplements academics with on-site student services including a school-based health clinic (The Pulse), a Success Center for counseling, a Future Center for college advising, and a food pantry.

Product overview

George Washington High School (GWHS) is a public high school within Denver Public Schools offering a unified set of educational programs and student services rather than a commercial product. The school's academic portfolio is organized around three core pillars: (1) a full International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program for college-preparatory students; (2) DPS CareerConnect, a career-oriented program offering Business, Creative, and STEM pathways with work-based learning; and (3) standard and honors college-prep coursework. Supporting these academic offerings are student-facing services including a School-Based Health Clinic branded 'The Pulse' (operated by Denver Health), a Success Center housing counseling and social-emotional support teams, a Future Center staffed by the Denver Scholarship Foundation for college advising, a Food Pantry for food-insecure students, and a School Store. The school also runs co-curricular programs in Arts, Speech and Debate, JROTC, and AVID, as well as student journalism (the Patriot Glow newspaper and Ten Toes Down/All Around GW broadcasts). These offerings are managed through DPS enterprise platforms including Infinite Campus (student information system) and Schoology (learning management system).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program A rigorous two-year pre-university college-preparatory curriculum offering six subject groups (English, Math, World Languages, Individuals and Societies, Experimental Sciences, and the Arts) plus the IB Core (CAS, TOK, Extended Essay). Available to GWHS students as full Diploma candidates or individual course students.
• CareerConnect (Business, Creative, STEM Pathways) A DPS-wide career education program connecting students with partner companies and higher education institutions through hands-on workplace experiences. At GWHS it includes BusinessConnect (Principles of Marketing, Accounting, Business and Marketing Essentials), CreativeConnect (Digital Media Foundations, Commercial Photography, Graphic Design and Illustration), and STEMConnect (AP Computer Science Principles and AP Computer Science A).
• The Pulse - School-Based Health Clinic A full-service Denver Health-operated school-based health center offering well-child checks, prescriptions, immunizations, chronic condition care, acute illness/injury treatment, confidential reproductive health services, STI testing/treatment, mental health counseling, dental services, and parent/child health education, available at no cost to all DPS students.
• Future Center (Denver Scholarship Foundation College Advising) A Denver Scholarship Foundation-operated college advising center staffed by DSF College Advisors who help students navigate post-secondary options, earn college scholarships, and access four-year renewable need-based scholarships.
• Success Center A centralized student support hub housing the counseling team, social-emotional health team, and college advising, providing academic counseling, social work services, and coordination of mental health support for all GWHS students.
• GWHS Food Pantry A student support service providing access to food, hygiene products, winter coats, and school supplies to students and staff. Operates Wednesday afternoons during the school year and offers Thanksgiving, Winter, and Spring Break food baskets.
• Speech and Debate Program A co-curricular speech and debate program and team consistently ranked as a top national performer. Students enrolled in the Speech and Debate course automatically join the team and participate in weekend tournaments across the state and country.
• Fine Arts Program A comprehensive arts program spanning Visual Arts (including IB Visual Arts), Performing Arts (Choir, Band, Guitar/Piano, Theater, IB Theater), Dance, Speech and Debate, and Music, with opportunities for performance, creation, and appreciation.
• Student Journalism Program Student-run journalism program producing the 'Patriot Glow' newspaper, 'Ten Toes Down' video broadcasts (featuring athletes, coaches, and staff), and 'All Around GW' video features covering student leadership, recent graduates, and school events.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 200 students participate in IB Diploma Program
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Denver Scholarship FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDSF operates Future Centers serving 19 Denver high schools. Each Future Center is staffed by a College Advisor who works with students and families to increase access to and completion of post-secondary learning. DSF provides four-year renewable need-based scholarships.
• Denver HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to operate The Pulse, a school-based health clinic providing medical, dental, mental health, and health education services. Services include physical exams, immunizations, reproductive health care, substance use counseling, and insurance enrollment. Services available at no cost to DPS students.
• City YearcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity Year staff members are embedded in grade 9 English Honors and Integrated Math 1 classes, engaging with the same material taught in class alongside students. Also provides free after-school tutoring four days a week to support student achievement.
• Food Bank of the RockiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides mobile pantry food distribution services supporting the GWHS Food Pantry program. Mobile pantry locations are available to supplement food distribution efforts.
• Denver Public SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGWHS is part of the Denver Public Schools district network. DPS provides district-level oversight, funding, technology platforms (Schoology, Parent Portal), curriculum standards, and operational support.
• Kobu FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGWHS alumnus Kai Suematsu and his Kobu Foundation partner with GWHS's Food Pantry to support Winter and Spring Break food basket distributions for students.
• GW Speech Parent Organization (GWSPO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent organization supporting the Speech and Debate team, providing volunteer coordination and fundraising for tournament participation and program resources.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Denver School of the Arts: DPS magnet high school specializing in arts education; competes with GWHS for artistically inclined students in SchoolChoice and shares the same district funding and oversight structure.
• South High School: DPS public high school serving Denver students with a similar college-preparatory focus and comparable wraparound supports. Overlaps directly with GWHS in target student demographics and district-funded programming.
• Thomas Jefferson High School: DPS public high school offering IB and STEM-focused coursework (TJHS is well known for its sciences program). Competes with GWHS in SchoolChoice for STEM-oriented students within the same district.
• North High School: DPS public high school serving a similar Denver student population with comparable IB, AVID, and college advising services. Direct competitor for the same enrollment pool and donor/partner attention.
• East High School: Another large DPS public high school in Denver offering IB coursework, AP courses, and competing for the same SchoolChoice enrollment pool. Comparable scale, similar district funding model, and overlap in IB and CareerConnect programming make it the closest like-for-like comparison.

Regional players

• Smoky Hill High School: Cherry Creek School District public high school offering IB and AP coursework to Denver metro students; comparable in academic profile but does not directly compete with GWHS in SchoolChoice enrollment.
• Fairview High School: Boulder Valley public high school with an established IB Diploma Program; competes with GWHS for high-achieving Colorado families but serves a different district and geographic territory.
• Boulder High School: Boulder public high school with IB and similar college-preparatory offerings; comparable in scale and program mix but in a different district and primarily serves Boulder residents.
• Cherry Creek High School: Cherry Creek School District public high school offering IB and a comparable college-prep portfolio. Strong academic reputation in the Denver metro that competes for families considering private or out-of-district enrollment.

Emerging players

• DSST Public Schools: Denver-based public charter school network with multiple high school campuses emphasizing STEM and college prep; competes with GWHS for college-bound Denver families via DPS's unified enrollment system.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/GWHS_Denver
• Instagraminstagram.com/gwhsdenver
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/george-washington-high-school-74

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 George Washington High School