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Highland High

Q: Is Highland High a good school?

Highland High ranks 1062 nd of 2162 California high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

1062^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,162 California High Schools

Better than 51% of California high schools

Summary

Highland High is a large public high school serving grades 9-12 to about 2,530 students in Bakersfield, California, as part of the Kern High district, and it operates in a high-need community where most students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

When compared to other local high schools, Highland stands out in several important areas. It has the highest science proficiency and one of the highest English Language Arts proficiency rates among similar comprehensive schools like South High and Bakersfield High. The school also does an excellent job of getting students to graduation day, with a rate that beats the state average, and it maintains a lower rate of chronic student absences than most nearby schools, including Del Oro High and North High.

Like other schools in the district, Highland faces a significant challenge with mathematics proficiency, though its rate is actually among the better ones locally. The school has shown it can effectively support specific groups of students, such as English Language Learners, where scores have improved notably. It's important for parents to know that Highland achieves these relative strengths—like leading in science and managing attendance well—while spending less per student than several neighboring schools, suggesting it uses its resources efficiently.

2,530

Students ?

23.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,339

Per pupil spending ?

87.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2900 Royal Scots Way
Bakersfield, CA 93306-2819

(661) 872-2777

District: Kern High

Feeder schools for Highland High:

Elementary:	Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary
	Henry Eissler Elementary
Middle:	Chipman Junior High
	Compton Junior High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

74.3%

White:

15.1%

African American:

5.0%

See top rated California high schools

Compare Highland High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 46th percentile in 2022 → 51st in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 51st (2025) from a 46th-percentile low (2022)

✓Above the California median (51st percentile)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (33% vs 41% meeting standards)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Mathematics scores 22 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school33%

District avg31%

California avg41%

1,062^nd of 2,162

California public high schools ?

Top 49%▼ down 19 pts since 2015

From top 31% (2015) to top 49% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

7^th of 25High Schools in the Kern High

984^th of 1,543Kern High among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	48.9	1062 of 2162	50.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.2	1019 of 2159	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.8	802 of 2170	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	40.9	1153 of 2123	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.3	999 of 2133	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	58.0	841 of 2017	58.3%	★★★☆☆
2017	59.3	811 of 2021	59.9%	★★★☆☆
2016	63.5	706 of 2039	65.4%	★★★☆☆
2015	67.0	609 of 1994	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2013	45.4	911 of 2426	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2012	42.3	995 of 2354	57.7%	★★★☆☆
2011	41.2	1024 of 2367	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2010	42.2	964 of 2281	57.7%	★★★☆☆
2009	41.7	961 of 2238	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2008	32.9	1097 of 2117	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2007	40.9	852 of 2063	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2006	40.1	834 of 1968	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2005	34.6	928 of 1901	51.2%	★★★☆☆
2004	35.8	796 of 1653	51.8%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	51.4	219 of 523	58.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.2	208 of 517	59.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	73.8	107 of 521	79.5%	★★★★☆
2022	25.1	401 of 522	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	57.2	211 of 592	64.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	60.6	195 of 582	66.5%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	29.0	426 of 573	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.3	445 of 582	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	29.3	843 of 1161	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.4	707 of 1117	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	21.5	915 of 1052	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	45.9	440 of 1085	59.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	39.4	571 of 1064	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.1	764 of 1044	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	48.8	308 of 941	67.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	44.2	368 of 938	60.8%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	47.3	961 of 1906	49.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.5	1052 of 1915	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	56.2	752 of 1915	60.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	39.3	1073 of 1858	42.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	43.9	995 of 1833	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	58.0	755 of 1760	57.1%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	50.8	915 of 1900	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	53.7	811 of 1902	57.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	66.2	546 of 1917	71.5%	★★★★☆
2022	43.7	994 of 1861	46.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.5	886 of 1814	51.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	66.0	564 of 1742	67.6%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	50.3	949 of 2013	52.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.8	934 of 2026	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.0	697 of 2030	65.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	38.7	1160 of 1943	40.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	48.4	973 of 1937	49.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	56.3	802 of 1862	56.9%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	46.4	998 of 1942	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	50.2	883 of 1948	54.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	55.2	758 of 1963	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	38.2	1096 of 1916	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.3	878 of 1880	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	53.2	851 of 1834	53.6%	★★★☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2023	26.4	60 of 74	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	3.3	510 of 515	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	29.9	884 of 1252	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	41.2	601 of 1216	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.0	309 of 1197	74.2%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	50.3	607 of 1155	47.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.0	698 of 1173	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	50.7	592 of 1193	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	51.0	580 of 1204	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	50.7	605 of 1222	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	47.1	682 of 1173	41.9%	★★☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

English Language Learner (2024)59th percentile+7 vs school

African American (2025)58th percentile+7 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)53rd percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)52nd percentile~ school

Female (2025)50th percentile~ school

Male (2025)49th percentile~ school

White (2025)47th percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2025)29th percentile-21 vs school

Disabled (2022)27th percentile-18 vs school

Asian (2024)26th percentile-27 vs school

Migrant (2023)19th percentile-44 vs school

Multi-racial (2022)1st percentile-45 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy55%+6 vs state

Science28%-4 vs state

Mathematics16%-22 vs state

2.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, August 7, 2014

Administration and teachers not open to working with students and families, and security harassed my child. Close Quote

Schools Near Highland High

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CSA Spanish Overall (2025)		CSA Spanish Listening (2025)		CSA Spanish Writing (2025)		CSA Spanish Reading (2025)		CSA Spanish Speaking (2025)	CAST Science (2025)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)		Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CSA Spanish Overall 11th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall All Grades	CSA Spanish Listening 11th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening All Grades	CSA Spanish Writing 11th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing All Grades	CSA Spanish Reading 11th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading All Grades	CSA Spanish Speaking 11th Grade	CAST Science 11th Grade	CAST Science 12th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Highland High	Public	9-12	2900 Royal Scots Way	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 872-2777	2,530	106	23.9	87.4%	382 (15.1%)	126 (5.0%)	1,881 (74.3%)	79 (3.1%)	20 (0.8%)	1 (0.0%)	38 (1.5%)	48.9	1062^nd of 2162 public high schools	50.9%		49.2	1019^th of 2159 public high schools	52.8%	43										29.0	6.7	28.5	54.9	54.9	15.5	15.5	$17,339	$1,986	$15,353
East Bakersfield High	Public	9-12	2200 Quincy St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 871-7221	2,331	96	24.4	90.2%	93 (4.0%)	106 (4.5%)	2,095 (89.9%)	11 (0.5%)	10 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (0.7%)	41.4	1225^th of 2162 public high schools	43.3%		47.3	1071^st of 2159 public high schools	50.4%	154	36.0	36.0	28.0	28.0	28.0	28.0	24.0	24.0	80.0	22.2		22.1	52.8	52.8	11.7	11.7	$16,767	$1,980	$14,787
Foothill High	Public	9-12	501 Park Dr.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 366-4491	2,043	85	24.0	87.8%	114 (5.6%)	50 (2.4%)	1,835 (89.8%)	10 (0.5%)	12 (0.6%)	2 (0.1%)	19 (0.9%)	37.7	1316^th of 2162 public high schools	39.1%		32.7	1431^st of 2159 public high schools	33.7%	115	31.3	31.3	18.8	18.8	25.0	25.0	21.9	21.9	68.8	18.6	6.7	18.2	44.5	44.5	17.5	17.5	$18,300	$2,092	$16,208
Kern High Regional Occupational Center	Public	9-12	501 South Mt. Vernon Ave.	Bakersfield	93307	Kern County	Kern High Regional Occupational Center	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(661) 831-3327	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Tierra Del Sol Continuation High	Public	9-12	3700 East Belle Terrace	Bakersfield	93307	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 832-3700	241	17	14.5	98.3%	18 (7.5%)	23 (9.5%)	196 (81.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	9.4	2043^rd of 2162 public high schools	5.5%		11.3	1986^th of 2159 public high schools	8.0%	57											0.0	0.0	3.3	3.3	2.3	2.3	$27,718	$2,638	$25,080
Mira Monte High	Public	9-12	1800 South Fairfax Rd.	Bakersfield	93307	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 366-1800	2,048	85	24.1	94.7%	59 (2.9%)	69 (3.4%)	1,860 (90.8%)	14 (0.7%)	7 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (1.9%)	22.7	1634^th of 2162 public high schools	24.4%		23.4	1620^th of 2159 public high schools	25.0%	14										13.2		13.2	32.8	32.8	6.5	6.5	$19,887	$2,155	$17,732
Vista Continuation High	Public	9-12	200 P St.	Bakersfield	93304	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 327-8561	221	15	14.6	93.7%	11 (5.0%)	20 (9.0%)	183 (82.8%)	4 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.4%)	9.6	2038^th of 2162 public high schools	5.7%		12.5	1914^th of 2159 public high schools	11.3%	124										1.1		1.1	13.2	13.2	0.9	0.9	$30,241	$2,065	$28,176
Bakersfield High	Public	9-12	1241 G St.	Bakersfield	93301	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 324-9841	3,069	120	25.6	81.5%	349 (11.4%)	335 (10.9%)	2,216 (72.2%)	39 (1.3%)	24 (0.8%)	7 (0.2%)	97 (3.2%)	39.4	1276^th of 2162 public high schools	41.0%		33.6	1405^th of 2159 public high schools	34.9%	129										23.5		23.5	42.4	42.4	16.9	16.9	$17,416	$2,050	$15,366
North High	Public	9-12	300 Galaxy Ave.	Bakersfield	93308	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 399-3351	2,135	84	25.3	87.4%	626 (29.3%)	115 (5.4%)	1,122 (52.6%)	18 (0.8%)	18 (0.8%)	7 (0.3%)	228 (10.7%)	40.1	1254^th of 2162 public high schools	42.0%		39.4	1252^nd of 2159 public high schools	42.0%	2										22.4		22.4	53.1	53.1	9.2	9.2	$17,637	$2,100	$15,537
South High	Public	9-12	1101 Planz Rd.	Bakersfield	93304	Kern County	Kern High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 831-3680	2,107	87	24.3	96.8%	86 (4.1%)	169 (8.0%)	1,769 (84.0%)	19 (0.9%)	9 (0.4%)	2 (0.1%)	52 (2.5%)	46.3	1109^th of 2162 public high schools	48.7%		49.1	1023^rd of 2159 public high schools	52.6%	86										18.8	45.8	23.5	53.6	53.6	16.7	16.7	$18,036	$2,111	$15,925

Frequently Asked Questions about Highland High

What district is Highland High in?

Kern High

What schools feed into Highland High?

Highland High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary
Elementary : Henry Eissler Elementary
Middle : Chipman Junior High
Middle : Compton Junior High

Is Highland High a good school?

Highland High ranks 1062^nd of 2162 California high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Highland High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 2,530 students attended Highland High.

What is the racial makeup of Highland High?

Students at Highland High are 74% Hispanic, 15% White, 5% African American, 3% Asian, 2% Two or more races.

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

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.