Highland Elementary

Summary:

Highland Elementary is a public elementary school in Burlington, North Carolina, serving students from kindergarten to 5th grade as part of the Alamance-Burlington Schools district. With a diverse student population, Highland Elementary has consistently outperformed the district and state in academic performance, maintaining a statewide ranking in the top half to top third of North Carolina elementary schools over the past decade.

Highland Elementary's academic performance is a key strength, with proficiency rates in Mathematics, Reading, and Science that exceed the district and state averages. For example, in 5th grade Mathematics, Highland Elementary had a 53.3% proficiency rate, compared to 45.7% for the district and 58.1% for the state. The school's statewide ranking has fluctuated between 236 and 835 out of over 1,500 elementary schools, placing it among the top-performing schools in the region. However, the school's performance varies across different student subgroups, with male, Hispanic, and White students generally outperforming female, African American, and Economically Disadvantaged students.

Compared to nearby schools in the Alamance-Burlington district, Highland Elementary generally outperforms its peers, such as Eastlawn Elementary, South Graham Elementary, and Hillcrest Elementary. However, Marvin B. Smith Elementary and Edwin M. Holt Elementary have stronger academic performance and higher statewide rankings than Highland Elementary. Additionally, Highland Elementary has seen a significant increase in the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, from 22% in 2020-2021 to 46.6% in 2022-2023, indicating a growing population of economically disadvantaged students.


Detail:

Public K-5

 3720 Bonnar Bridge Parkway
       Burlington, NC  27215


(336) 538-8700

District: Alamance-Burlington Schools

SchoolDigger Rank:
705th of 1,505 North Carolina Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $9,245 Help


Students who attend Highland Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Turrentine Middle
High:    Walter M Williams High

Student/teacher ratio:  15.1 Help
Number of students:  630

Racial breakdown:

White:
37.5%
African American:
30.0%
Hispanic:
17.1%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  51.7% Help


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Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Highland Elementary ranks better than 53.2% of elementary schools in North Carolina. It also ranks 8th among 20 ranked elementary schools in the Alamance-Burlington Schools District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 52.69. (See more...)
Student Body
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Compare Details Student population at Highland Elementary is diverse. Racial makeup is: White (37.5%), African American (30%), Hispanic (17.1%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 51.7% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Highland Elementary is 15.1, which is the 10th best among 20 elementary schools in the Alamance-Burlington Schools District. (See more...)
Help
Compare Highland Elementary employs 41.6 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Highland Elementary is $9,245. 15 elementary schools in the Alamance-Burlington Schools District spend more per student.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Highland Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Highland Elementary 705th of 1505 North Carolina public elementary schools. (See Highland Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Multi-racial students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Gifted and Talented students:
Male students:
African American students:
Hispanic students:
White students:


Alamance-Burlington Schools:

SchoolDigger ranks Alamance-Burlington Schools 174th of 242 North Carolina school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Highland Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2008 69.34 359th 1324 72.9%
2009 65.49 496th 1354 63.4%
2010 57.93 649th 1363 52.4%
2011 65.90 498th 1381 63.9%
2012 66.39 472nd 1388 66.0%
2013 76.88 269th 1403 80.8%
2014 80.12 236th 1390 83.0%
2015 77.02 290th 1440 79.9%
2016 72.42 353rd 1425 75.2%
2017 60.18 573rd 1429 59.9%
2018 63.21 531st 1434 63.0%
2019 68.00 441st 1473 70.1%
2021 59.02 595th 1489 60.0%
2022 56.59 634th 1514 58.1%
2023 45.56 835th 1502 44.4%
2024 52.69 705th 1505 53.2%
See the entire list of North Carolina Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 45.98 98th 159 38.4%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 54.57 172nd 514 66.5%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 45.89 735th 1332 44.8%
2019 46.25 768th 1361 43.6%
2021 45.77 673rd 1329 49.4%
2022 47.22 709th 1366 48.1%
2023 39.98 910th 1437 36.7%
2024 36.95 967th 1450 33.3%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 61.63 553rd 1405 60.6%
2019 64.72 476th 1424 66.6%
2021 48.71 701st 1440 51.3%
2022 43.70 820th 1458 43.8%
2023 39.09 900th 1459 38.3%
2024 43.00 841st 1455 42.2%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 60.84 258th 897 71.2%
2019 34.91 604th 878 31.2%
2022 55.80 198th 634 68.8%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Gifted and Talented students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 53.14 415th 612 32.2%
2021 63.22 213th 494 56.9%
2022 33.33 448th 500 10.4%
2023 30.84 539th 582 7.4%
2024 56.32 366th 669 45.3%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Gifted and Talented Students!

Rank History for Male students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 63.63 500th 1413 64.6%
2019 68.23 407th 1430 71.5%
2021 67.56 424th 1444 70.6%
2022 67.32 433rd 1464 70.4%
2023 52.00 710th 1461 51.4%
2024 60.58 554th 1464 62.2%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 61.48 291st 927 68.6%
2019 67.71 225th 949 76.3%
2021 66.61 184th 896 79.5%
2022 52.58 373rd 927 59.8%
2023 29.72 695th 933 25.5%
2024 40.47 566th 924 38.7%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 27.20 711th 851 16.5%
2019 52.95 390th 865 54.9%
2021 64.27 212th 843 74.9%
2022 42.70 510th 893 42.9%
2023 53.49 378th 915 58.7%
2024 56.04 378th 951 60.3%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Highland Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools NC State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 61.49 462nd 1178 60.8%
2019 63.44 420th 1183 64.5%
2021 48.34 597th 1172 49.1%
2022 49.43 622nd 1194 47.9%
2023 42.53 717th 1183 39.4%
2024 57.15 495th 1166 57.5%
See the entire list of Best North Carolina Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Highland Elementary Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 





Data source: North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction

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Enrollment information for Highland Elementary

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
2008 317 58 17 30 3 n/a n/a 26 451
2009 390 96 22 32 4 n/a n/a 0 544
2010 415 106 38 35 4 n/a n/a 0 598
2011 416 90 33 66 1 1 22 0 629
2012 452 97 34 67 1 1 24 0 676
2013 440 79 36 78 2 1 30 0 666
2014 436 82 24 83 1 0 32 0 658
2015 405 94 34 87 2 0 26 0 648
2016 401 101 43 85 2 0 27 0 659
2017 399 132 42 90 2 0 26 0 691
2018 393 137 47 96 2 0 40 0 715
2019 388 158 46 104 2 0 44 0 742
2020 350 142 44 84 2 0 39 0 661
2021 288 140 49 74 1 0 39 0 591
2022 281 148 38 89 0 0 52 0 608
2023 279 173 43 94 0 0 59 0 648
2024 236 189 39 108 0 0 58 0 630

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Highland Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2008 451 26.7 16.9 n/a
2009 544 31.0 17.5 23.7
2010 598 33.8 17.6 33.1
2011 629 36.6 17.1 33.7
2012 676 37.8 17.8 33.3
2013 666 42.1 15.8 31.2
2014 658 40.4 16.2 34
2015 648 43.0 15.0 37.8
2016 659 46.0 14.3 38.1
2017 691 44.6 15.4 39.2
2018 715 46.6 15.3 36.8
2019 742 49.0 15.1 36.4
2020 661 46.3 14.2 31.3
2021 591 48.4 12.2 22
2022 608 45.0 13.4 26.3
2023 648 43.6 14.8 46.6
2024 630 41.6 15.1 51.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Highland Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2008 451 26.7 16.9 n/a
2009 544 31.0 17.5 23.7
2010 598 33.8 17.6 33.1
2011 629 36.6 17.1 33.7
2012 676 37.8 17.8 33.3
2013 666 42.1 15.8 31.2
2014 658 40.4 16.2 34
2015 648 43.0 15.0 37.8
2016 659 46.0 14.3 38.1
2017 691 44.6 15.4 39.2
2018 715 46.6 15.3 36.8
2019 742 49.0 15.1 36.4
2020 661 46.3 14.2 31.3
2021 591 48.4 12.2 22
2022 608 45.0 13.4 26.3
2023 648 43.6 14.8 46.6
2024 630 41.6 15.1 51.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Highland Elementary

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $741 (8.0%) $8,504 (92.0%) $9,244

Data source: North Carolina Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Highland Elementary

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 441st of 1473 Elementary schoolsRanks 835th of 1502 Elementary schools
 25.7%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade Mathematics (Highland Elementary)68.468.7
 0.3%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Alamance-Burlington Schools)57.647.8
 9.8%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)64.361.1
 3.2%
3rd Grade Reading (Highland Elementary)58.154.8
 3.3%
   3rd Grade Reading (Alamance-Burlington Schools)52.840.1
 12.7%
   3rd Grade Reading (North Carolina)56.848
 8.8%
4th Grade Mathematics (Highland Elementary)67.653.1
 14.5%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Alamance-Burlington Schools)48.744.4
 4.3%
   4th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
4th Grade Reading (Highland Elementary)64.753.1
 11.6%
   4th Grade Reading (Alamance-Burlington Schools)49.345.7
 3.6%
   4th Grade Reading (North Carolina)57.355.3
 2%
5th Grade Mathematics (Highland Elementary)70.831.9
 38.9%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Alamance-Burlington Schools)49.941.1
 8.8%
   5th Grade Mathematics (North Carolina)60.255.9
 4.3%
5th Grade Reading (Highland Elementary)61.138.1
 23%
   5th Grade Reading (Alamance-Burlington Schools)43.535.7
 7.8%
   5th Grade Reading (North Carolina)54.648
 6.6%
5th Grade Science (Highland Elementary)81.458.4
 23%
   5th Grade Science (Alamance-Burlington Schools)60.754.7
 6%
   5th Grade Science (North Carolina)72.665.3
 7.3%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students742648
 12.7%
African American158173
 9.5%
American Indian20
 100%
Asian4643
 6.5%
Hispanic10494
 9.6%
Pacific Islander00
White388279
 28.1%
Two or More Races4459
 34.1%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients36.4%46.6%
 10.2%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Highland Elementary

In the 2023-24 school year, 630 students attended Highland Elementary.

Students who attend Highland Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Turrentine Middle
High : Walter M Williams High

Students at Highland Elementary are 37% White, 30% African American, 17% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races, 6% Asian.

Highland Elementary ranks 705th of 1505 North Carolina elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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