Autism Schools in Denver
Denver has only a handful of true autism and special-education schools, and most autistic kids here never attend one. This is the verified Denver-metro list, with real ages, grades, tuition, and who each school will actually take.
Budding Futures ABA provides in-home ABA therapy across Denver. We do not run a school, so we have no reason to sell you one.
Start here
Most autistic children in Denver attend a regular public school, in a regular classroom, with support written into an IEP. The law is built that way on purpose, and for a lot of kids it works well.
Only a small group of children go to a separate autism or special-education school, and that happens when the IEP team decides a regular setting cannot meet the child's needs. So before you hunt for a school, work out what support your child actually needs. That answer is usually easier to get, and it opens up more options.
One more thing that trips parents up online. Several Denver names that show up in a "autism schools" search are ABA therapy centers, not schools. We flag those below so you do not waste a phone call.
The Denver-metro autism school list
These are the real autism and special-education schools in and around Denver. Read the last column before you fall in love with one, because the way you get in is different at every school.
| School | Where | Ages / grades | Public or private | Cost | How you get in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Academy | Denver (4400 E Iliff Ave, 80222) · 303-777-5870 | Grades 2–12 | Private | $38,275–$41,350 a year. 30% of families get aid. | Apply directly. A learning-differences school, not autism-only, that autistic students attend. |
| Havern School | Littleton (4000 S Wadsworth Blvd, 80123) · 303-986-4587 | Grades K–8 | Private | $35,950 (2026–27). Over 40% use aid. | Apply directly. Serves level 1 and 2 autism alongside dyslexia and ADHD, with speech and occupational therapy built into the day. |
| Temple Grandin School | Boulder (3131 Indian Road, 80301) · 303-554-7363 | Middle and high school | Private | $48,880 a year. 24% get aid. | Apply directly. Inquiry, tour, then a 3-day student visit. Neurodivergent students, autism and ADHD named. |
| The Rise School of Denver | Denver (4901 E Eastman Ave, 80222) · 303-756-7473 | Early childhood / preschool | Private nonprofit | Donor-subsidized. Call for the family figure. | Space-available inclusive preschool for kids with and without developmental delays. Therapies are built into the classroom. |
| The Joshua School | Englewood (2303 E Dartmouth Ave) · Boulder · Centennial | Autism and developmental disabilities | Private, district-funded | $0 to your family. The district pays. | District-referral only. You cannot apply or private-pay. Your IEP must name a separate setting, and your district refers and funds the placement. |
| TACT (Teaching the Autism Community Trades) | Englewood (2960 S Umatilla St, 80110) · 303-295-0163 | Teens to young adults, through 21 | Public specialized day school (18–21) plus vocational program | Contact admissions | A trades and vocational program, not a K-12 academic school. Its 18-to-21 track became Colorado's first state-approved Specialized Day School. |
| Spectra School | Broomfield / Northglenn (7205 W 120th Ave, Broomfield) · 303-665-6800 | Ages 5–18 | State-approved specialized day school | Contact admissions | A specialized day school for students who need more support than a regular classroom, often placed through the district. |
These come up in "autism schools Denver" searches but are not schools you enroll in: Firefly Autism in Lakewood is a well-regarded ABA therapy provider, and Denver parents on Reddit recommend it, but it is a therapy center, not a school. Alpine Autism Center and Kishami Academy are in Colorado Springs, about 70 miles south, not the Denver metro. Some "autism center" listings in the Denver area only do diagnostic evaluations or tutoring, not schooling. Enrolling at a therapy center is not the same as enrolling your child in school.
Denver Public Schools autism classrooms
Denver Public Schools does not run a separate autism school. It runs center-based Multi-Intensive Autism (MI-A) classrooms inside regular schools, and demand is climbing fast.
DPS told CBS Colorado in April 2026 that it has seen an 84 percent rise in autistic students over five years. It opened 14 MI-A classrooms this school year, with 9 more planned. Each one caps at 10 to 12 students, with a dedicated adult and extra paraprofessionals.
Green Valley Elementary hosts one of these classrooms for the first time this year. As the principal put it, families "typically would have to go to another school to receive those supports," and now the school can meet those needs on its own campus.
Placement is not automatic. As Denver parents describe it, you generally start at your boundary school, and the IEP team decides whether a center-based classroom is the right setting. What that means for you, plainly: seats are getting tighter, and evaluations are not getting faster, so planning early is worth more every year.
Source: CBS Colorado, April 30, 2026.
What Denver-area districts offer
Most Denver-metro districts run autism programs inside regular schools rather than a standalone autism school. The model varies a lot by district, which matters before you move or transfer.
| District | What it runs |
|---|---|
| Denver Public Schools | Center-based Multi-Intensive Autism (MI-A) classrooms across campuses, plus other intensive-needs programs. Placement is an IEP team decision. |
| Cherry Creek | Integrated Learning Center and center-based autism programs, preschool through age 21, under a stated "purposeful inclusion" model. Denver parents online rate it highly. |
| Aurora Public Schools | Center-based autism classrooms at several P-8 schools so students can stay closer to home. Confirm current sites with the district. |
| Jeffco Public Schools | ASD Center Programs inside neighborhood schools. No medical autism diagnosis is required for eligibility. |
| Littleton and Englewood | Both come up often from Denver parents as districts with solid autism programs. |
You do not need a medical autism diagnosis to get into a district autism program. Eligibility is an educational decision made by the IEP team, not a medical one, and autism testing is a separate process.
Do Denver schools provide ABA therapy?
Usually not. A school will not provide ABA therapy just because a doctor recommended it.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a district provides what the IEP team decides your child needs to access their education. It does not have to follow every line of a doctor's letter, and IDEA does not name ABA as a required service. That is not a district being difficult. It is how the law is written.
So ABA usually comes from somewhere else. It comes through Health First Colorado or private insurance, delivered by an ABA provider, at home or after school. Since May 3, 2024, Colorado Medicaid does allow school as a billing location for behavioral therapy, but the outside provider still has to follow the district's own written policy, and plenty of districts still decline. More on how that works: school-based ABA therapy in Colorado.
What an autism school costs in Denver
District autism programs cost nothing. When a district refers a child to a separate school like The Joshua School, the district pays the tuition, not you.
Private tuition is real money. Temple Grandin School is $48,880 a year, Denver Academy runs $38,275 to $41,350, and Havern School is $35,950. All three offer need-based aid, and at Havern over 40 percent of families use it.
ABA therapy is a separate cost from school, and it is often the more affordable piece. Most Denver families we work with pay nothing through Health First Colorado ABA coverage in Denver, or a limited amount through commercial insurance. We verify benefits before anything starts.
Where Budding Futures fits
We are not a school, and we will not pretend to be one.
Budding Futures ABA provides in-home ABA therapy in Denver. Our BCBAs work around the school day rather than competing with it, and our clinical director, Rachel Blackburn, BCBA, reviews every plan. Our therapy is play-based and assent-based, built into your child's real routines at home.
When a district allows it, we coordinate with school staff so the goals line up. When it does not, we build the program at home and after school so the skills still carry into the classroom. We are not running an assessment waitlist right now, and most of our families are covered by Health First Colorado or commercial insurance.
What to ask when you tour a Denver school
Every school will tell you it is inclusive and that it individualizes learning. Those words are free. Here is what to actually ask about, whether you are touring a private school or a district center program.
- Who teaches your child. Ask how many special education teachers, therapists, and paraeducators are in the room, and what happens on a day when someone is out.
- How the therapies fit in. Ask whether speech and occupational therapy are built into the school day or bolted on and pulled out of class.
- Structured teaching or general classroom. Some autistic learners need specialized instruction in a small setting. Others do better in general education with support. The honest answer depends on your child.
- Sensory and regulation. Ask what the sensory supports actually are, where a child goes when overloaded, and how staff respond to aggression, not just how they prevent it.
- Routine and transitions. Ask what a normal day looks like start to finish, and what happens when the routine breaks.
Questions Denver parents ask
Can I enroll my child directly in an autism school in Denver?
Which Denver-area district is best for autism?
Do Denver schools provide ABA therapy?
What does an autism school cost in Denver?
What is the Denver Model for autism?
Do I need an autism diagnosis to get school support in Denver?
Is there a waitlist for autism schools and services in Denver?
Not sure what support your child actually needs?
We can talk through your child's goals, what a Denver school is and is not likely to cover, and what in-home ABA would look like in your week. No pressure, just a real conversation.