Denver Education

Four years after the founding of Denver, the new territorial government formed two public school districts that opened in 1862, providing the foundation for the 19 highly rated metro Denver public school districts that serve approximately 428,000 area school children today.
Higher education also was a priority in 19th century Denver. The University of Denver, established in 1864, is the oldest independent university in the Rocky Mountain region.

Other universities formed in the 19th century include: Colorado State University—1870; Colorado School of Mines— 1874; University of Colorado at Boulder—1876; and Regis University—1877. And many others had their beginnings in the early 20th century .