Third-party drive tests with state-certified examiners.
Class, permit test, and 6 hours of lessons.
Course online, testing and lessons in person.
Behind-the-wheel lessons with patient and certified instructors.
Centennial teens take Colorado's highest-rated 30-hour classroom course with American Driving Academy. The five-day class meets teen permit requirements, with our expert-written workbook and videos filmed on Colorado roads. The class is just the beginning. Family-owned since 1999, we strive for the country's best safety record by going beyond state and industry standards. We prepare teens for safe, confident driving and support your family with permit testing, lessons, the drive test, and post-license Driver Skills Day.
Four Ways to Begin
Every package includes the 30-hour class and permit test. Teens may begin as early as 14 years and 6 months. Compare lessons, the drive test, and Driver Skills Day.
400K+
Students Taught
Colorado family-owned since 1999
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In-person classes. Open 7 days a week. | |||
| Permit Ready $195 Enroll now → | Road Ready $535 Enroll now → | License Ready $625 Enroll now → | Driver Complete $860 Enroll now → | |
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| Ready to Enroll? → | Enroll Now | Enroll Now | Enroll Now | Enroll Now |
Not sure which package fits? Call our Centennial team at (303) 623-1404, and we will help you choose.
Your teen needs the 30-hour class and permit test now, while your family would rather purchase lessons and the drive test as those steps come up.
Your teen plans to license before 16½ and needs the six lesson hours Colorado requires, while your family will arrange the drive test later.
You want the drive test included from the start because it costs your family less inside the package than purchasing it on its own later.
You want the full licensing path plus Driver Skills Day, so your teen practices emergency reactions and vehicle control after earning a license.
Complete the live 30-hour class across five days.
In every packagePass the written exam on Colorado road rules.
In every packageComplete the DMV visit on the 15th birthday or later.
At the DMVFinish three 2-hour lessons during the permit year.
In Road Ready & upPass the Colorado drive test, then receive the license.
In License Ready & upSmoky Hill Office
The East Smoky Hill Road office hosts the five-day class, permit testing, private lessons, and the Colorado drive test. Your family uses the same address for the 30-hour course and for every appointment that follows it.
The Centennial office is backed by American Driving Academy's statewide network of 16 Colorado locations.
In Person, Done Right
The State sets the course minimum. We add a Colorado-specific workbook, experienced educators, discussion, traffic observation, and practice that asks teens to explain safe choices instead of memorizing answers.
American Driving Academy is one of only two AAA Approved driving schools in Colorado. We partner with MADD Colorado and Bachus & Schanker, and we work with many Cherry Creek School District high schools.
Permit ages, practice logs, lesson rules, and test timing can be confusing. Call 7 days a week or visit the Smoky Hill office, and a local team member will explain what your teen has finished and what comes next.
The support continues after class. ADA Safety Advantage™ lets your teen review the course again, dash-camera footage can help resolve lesson concerns, and progress notes show what to practice at home.
More Than a Correct Answer
New drivers need more than a correct answer. They need to understand why a choice is safe, hear how other students reason through the same situation, and reconsider an answer when one new detail changes the risk. A live classroom lets the instructor pause, ask follow-up questions, and turn a rule into a decision.
American Driving Academy combines direct teaching with videos, workbook exercises, group activities, games, quizzes, and traffic observation. The workbook was written for Colorado students rather than adapted from a national text. Examples connect right-of-way, following distance, weather, impairment, distraction, and seat belts to choices Centennial teens will make on neighborhood streets, school routes, freeways, and trips into downtown Denver.
What the Course Covers
The class moves through 15 topics in order, with time for questions, examples, discussion, and review before students move on.
Experience at the Front of the Room
American Driving Academy looks for instructors whose earlier careers required patience, preparation, and clear judgment.
Behind the Wheel
Road Ready, License Ready, and Driver Complete each provide three private 2-hour lessons. Your teen receives six hours of one-on-one coaching in a dual-control, state-inspected car with a patient, state-certified instructor. Centennial lessons are conducted 7 days a week.
Each session builds from what your teen can already do. Instructors may begin with setup, steering, braking, turns, lane position, scanning, and intersections, then add lane changes, parallel parking, multi-lane roads, freeway entry and exit, and downtown Denver traffic as control improves.
After every lesson, parents hear what their teen did well and what to work on next. For a teen licensing before age 16½, the six hours also meet Colorado's professional instruction requirement. The Lesson Review Promise and progress tracker apply to every included lesson.
The Final Step
Colorado Driver License offices do not administer the drive test. American Driving Academy is a State-approved third-party testing center and the state's largest drive-testing provider, giving more than 35,000 tests across Colorado each year.
License Ready ($625) and Driver Complete ($860) include the test at the Centennial office. Your teen may schedule after satisfying the applicable age, permit-holding, supervised-practice, and professional-training rules. Permit Ready and Road Ready families may purchase a drive test on its own when the student becomes eligible.
Examiners give calm directions and explain the result after the route. Once a passing result is recorded, eligible students can usually upgrade the permit online instead of returning to a DMV office. Colorado mails the physical license afterward.
After the License
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that teen drivers are 50% more likely to crash in the first month of having a license than after a full year of experience. A passing drive test confirms the skills Colorado evaluates in ordinary traffic, but it cannot safely recreate a skid, a sudden hazard, or the split-second judgment needed during an emergency stop.
Driver Complete ($860) includes a 3.5-hour session after the license is earned. In a wide, controlled space, your teen repeats emergency braking, skid recovery, hazard response, and precise vehicle-control exercises that cannot be rehearsed the same way on public streets.
Students experience how the car reacts when traction changes, a stopping distance suddenly shrinks, or an obstacle appears. The instructor can coach the response, reset the station, and give the student additional attempts. In that controlled setting, your teen sees how each small decision behind the wheel changes what the car does next and how the whole moment ends.
Held after licensure on scheduled dates in large parking lots around the Denver metro area, not at our offices. Subject to availability, weather, staffing, and program policies.
Behind Every Package
Finishing the class does not end the support your family gets. Your teen can retake the course to review it, parents can request a lesson review, and eligible graduates may qualify for insurance or AAA benefits.
After completing the 30-hour course, your teen may return to the full course at no additional charge whenever review would help. Instructor time may also be scheduled to talk through a new vehicle, an unfamiliar intersection, a safety concern, or the next practice goal. Availability and program terms apply.
Every lesson vehicle uses a dash camera. Contact us within seven days if a lesson concerns you while footage may still be available. We will review the experience and follow up. The promise does not guarantee a license, test result, refund, free lesson, instructor or schedule change, or another outcome.
Driver education or professional lessons may reduce premiums with some insurers. The documents, eligibility rules, and savings vary by company and policy, so confirm the requirements with your insurer before expecting a discount.
Some teen graduates may qualify for a free AAA membership when they are dependents of an active AAA Primary Member living in Colorado. Eligibility, enrollment, territory, expiration, renewal, and all other AAA program rules apply.
Beginning January 1, 2027, HB24-1021 adds driver education requirements before a first Colorado permit is issued. Applicants ages 15 through 17 must complete a 30-hour driver education course. Applicants ages 18 through 20 may use either the 30-hour course or a 4-hour driver awareness program.
The classroom course on this page already meets the 30-hour education requirement. A Centennial student who completes it before the law changes will not need a different course when applying under the new rules.
The permit requirement and behind-the-wheel requirement are separate. A student seeking a license before age 16½ must still complete six hours of professional instruction through an approved driving school. Road Ready, License Ready, and Driver Complete include those six hours as three private lessons.
Read Colorado's 2027 Driver's Ed Guide for Parents →Reviewed for accuracy by Kevin Hughes, Owner. Kevin is a Colorado driver-education expert who has created extensive Colorado-specific driver's ed content and provided driver-safety expertise to local news outlets. Centennial classroom guidance was reviewed using Colorado's driver-education standards, DMV licensing requirements, HB24-1021, and information received directly from regulators. Last reviewed: August 2026
Straight From Families
This was really good for me as a teen who took the class. They taught the material very well, I learned the rules of the road quickly, and I came away with a much clearer understanding of how to drive.
Ryan was seriously the best instructor. My child did not look forward to the in-person lessons, but left all three sessions smiling. They drove around town and on the highway and gained great experience.
Curtis was patient and professional and made me comfortable throughout the drive test. His directions were clear and calm, which helped me stay confident. The process was organized and stress free.
An eligible teen who completes an American Driving Academy course may qualify for a free AAA membership when the teen is a dependent of an active AAA Primary Member living in Colorado. The teen membership expires on the Primary Member's renewal date. The benefit is not automatic and cannot be treated as a standalone membership. AAA eligibility, enrollment, territory, and program terms control. Families should verify the current requirements before relying on it. Existing AAA Members may call 877-244-9790 to add an eligible teen driver.
See AAA Eligibility and Membership DetailsTwo Ways to Learn
Both formats cover Colorado's full 30-hour driver education requirement.
Your teen learns best by asking questions in real time, following a set five-day schedule, and working through Colorado material beside other students.
All 30 hours take place face to face at the Smoky Hill office, where the instructor can slow down, revisit a topic, and lead a group discussion.
Your teen prefers independent work, needs to fit the course around school, sports, or a job, and is comfortable learning from home at a flexible pace.
Centennial online packages remain Colorado-specific and may still include permit testing, private lessons, the drive test, and Driver Skills Day.
Centennial classroom packages cost $195 for Permit Ready, $535 for Road Ready, $625 for License Ready, and $860 for Driver Complete. Every package includes the five-day, 30-hour class and permit test. Road Ready includes six hours of lessons, License Ready also includes the Colorado drive test, and Driver Complete includes Driver Skills Day.
Students may start the 30-hour classroom course at 14 years and 6 months. Beginning around 14½ leaves time to finish class, take the permit test at 14 years and 11 months, and receive the permit on the 15th birthday or later.
A minor can first become eligible at age 16. The student generally must hold the permit for 12 full months, record 50 supervised hours including 10 at night, complete any required professional instruction, pass the drive test, and satisfy current DMV rules.
Classes are scheduled on weekends during the school year and in fall, winter, spring, and summer breaks. The course covers five days and generally meets from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM. Current Centennial dates appear when a package is selected.
Six hours through an approved driving school are generally required when a teen plans to receive a license before age 16½. A student licensing later may not need them, although professional lessons can still improve observation, control, confidence, and readiness.
Driver Skills Day is a 3.5-hour, hands-on session included in Driver Complete. Students attend after earning a license and practice skid recovery, emergency braking, hazard response, vehicle control, tire safety, and vehicle checks on scheduled Denver-metro dates.
ADA Safety Advantage™ belongs only to the original student and cannot be transferred. Complimentary re-enrollment applies to the American Driving Academy 30-hour driver education course and may be completed online or in person, subject to course availability, platform availability, and enrollment policies. It does not include permit tests, behind-the-wheel lessons, drive tests, private tutoring, state fees, third-party charges, or other paid services. Instructor support must be scheduled and remains subject to availability.
The benefit carries no cash value. It remains available during the original student's lifetime while American Driving Academy continues operating and continues to offer the applicable course or support service.
The Lesson Review Promise applies to behind-the-wheel lessons provided by American Driving Academy. When a student or parent is dissatisfied, American Driving Academy will examine the lesson experience and follow up with the student or parent. The promise does not guarantee a license, drive-test result, test eligibility, skill level, refund, free lesson, instructor change, schedule change, or another specific outcome. Documentation, footage availability, scheduling, and program policies govern the review and follow-up.
Driver Skills Day is included with Driver Complete for students who have earned a license. Sessions run on scheduled dates and are subject to availability, location availability, weather, safety requirements, staffing, equipment, and program policies. American Driving Academy may change station activities, vehicles, exercises, sites, or format when safety, facilities, staffing, equipment, weather, or operations require it.
If Driver Skills Day is not offered to a Driver Complete student, or is delivered without the core hands-on skills described on this page, American Driving Academy will refund $225 of the Driver Complete price. That refund is the student's sole remedy related to Driver Skills Day. The remaining package services, including the 30-hour class, permit test, six hours of lessons, and drive test, are unaffected.
Colorado permit and license requirements vary with the student's age, permit date, training history, supervised hours, documents, and current DMV rules. A student may begin the 30-hour driver education course at 14 years and 6 months and may take the permit test with American Driving Academy at 14 years and 11 months. The permit may be issued at age 15 after course completion, a passing permit-test result, and the required DMV process.
A Colorado minor must hold the permit for 12 full months before applying for a license. A student seeking a license before age 16½ generally needs six hours of behind-the-wheel training through an approved driving school. Exceptions may apply. Families must confirm current Colorado DMV requirements before permit issuance, drive testing, or licensing.
American Driving Academy does not guarantee permit approval, license approval, insurance discounts, AAA membership, or drive-test results.
If under the age of 16, you need to first complete a driver's ed course. In-person and online options are available.
This 25 multiple-choice test is offered at many of our locations.
After passing the course and the permit test, you will need to go to the DMV to get your driving permit. To make a DMV appointment…
If you are under 16.5 years of age, you are required to take six hours of driving lessons before getting your driver's license. Learn to drive with our state-certified, friendly, and patient instructors.
After holding your permit for one full year, it is time to take your driver's license test.
You need to pass this test to get your permit. It is 25 multiple choice questions. We offer this test at many of our locations.
After passing the permit test, you will need to go to the DMV to get your driving permit. To make a DMV appointment…
If you are new to Colorado or you don’t have driving experience, we offer driving lessons 7 days a week. These are 2-hour lessons with state-certified, patient, and friendly instructors.
You are required to pass the driver's license test in order to get your driver's license. After passing, you may be eligible to get your license that same day without even having to visit the DMV.
