I don't know anything about the quality of the schools, as I don't have kids, but I do know they are building several new ones up here in the north metro. Two of the communities up here that are growing rapidly include Broomfield and Erie. There is also a lot of growth near the airport in a new town called Reunion, but seems like kind of a cheesy area with no schools, shopping etc.
While traffic here is not nearly as bad as Houston, it's still pretty bad. If you work it would be a good idea to live near the part of town your job is in.

Coming from Houston you are going to love it here! Clean air, excellent weather, and of course the mountains. The housing market has been pretty flat since I bought my place in 2001. There isn't much of a bubble here, so you won't have to worry about your house value crashing like other parts of the nation.