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Highland Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

440^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 576 Iowa Elementary Schools

Better than 24% of Iowa elementary schools

Summary

Highland Elementary School is a public elementary school in Riverside, Iowa, serving grades PK-5 with 278 students. The school is part of the Highland Community School District, which is ranked 213 out of 313 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Highland Elementary School faces several challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 7.0% to 23.4% over the past few years, significantly higher than the state average. The school's test scores on the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) are generally 10-20 percentage points lower than the state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. Additionally, the school has seen an increase in the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, from 13.82% in 2021-2022 to 22.61% in 2022-2023, suggesting a higher proportion of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

When compared to nearby schools in the Iowa City Community School District, such as Longfellow Elementary School and Robert Lucas Elementary School, Highland Elementary School generally underperforms in terms of test scores, chronic absenteeism, and free/reduced lunch rates. The school's statewide ranking has also steadily declined over the past several years, from 274 out of 599 Iowa elementary schools in 2015-2016 to 440 out of 576 in 2024-2025, indicating that it is performing worse relative to other elementary schools in the state.

242

Students ?

11.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,857

Per pupil spending ?

25.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

220 Schnoebelen Street
Riverside, IA 52327

(319) 648-2821

District: Highland Community School District

Students who attend Highland Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Highland Middle School
High:	Highland High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

92.1%

Hispanic:

5.8%

African American:

1.2%

See top rated Iowa elementary schools

Compare Highland Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 4th percentile in 2019 → 24th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 24th (2025) from a 4th-percentile low (2019)

✓Small classes — about 12 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Iowa average (63% vs 71% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (24th percentile)

!Science scores 15 pts below the Iowa average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school63%

District avg63%

Iowa avg71%

440^th of 576

Iowa public elementary schools ?

Bottom 24%▼ down 19 pts since 2015

From bottom 43% (2015) to bottom 24% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Iowa Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

213^th of 313Highland Community School District among Iowa 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	Iowa percentile	Rating
2025	34.3	440 of 576	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.1	472 of 557	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.4	439 of 565	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.0	512 of 574	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	38.1	397 of 567	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	8.5	576 of 603	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	486 of 567	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	52.2	341 of 574	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2016	60.9	274 of 599	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2015	53.2	351 of 616	43.0%	★★☆☆☆
2014	41.0	446 of 603	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	56.4	315 of 624	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2012	39.6	456 of 626	27.2%	★☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Iowa (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics68%-5 vs state

English Language Arts63%-8 vs state

Science49%-15 vs state

★

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Schools Near Highland Elementary School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ISASP English Language Arts (2025)			ISASP Mathematics (2025)			ISASP Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
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	ISASP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 4th Grade	ISASP English Language Arts 5th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 3rd Grade	ISASP Mathematics 4th Grade	ISASP Mathematics 5th Grade	ISASP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Highland Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	220 Schnoebelen Street	Riverside	52327	Washington County	Highland Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 648-2821	242	21	11.7	25.2%	223 (92.1%)	3 (1.2%)	14 (5.8%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	34.3	440^th of 576 public elementary schools	23.6%		19.1	472^nd of 557 public elementary schools	15.3%	32	44.1	67.6	74.4	58.8	73.5	72.1	48.8	$12,857	$486	$12,371
Mid-Prairie East Elementary School	Public	K-2	702 6th St	Kalona	52247	Washington County	Mid-Prairie Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 656-2243	255	21	12.3	22.4%	229 (89.8%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.5%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.4%)								(n/a)								$13,475	$1,353	$12,122
Lone Tree Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	303 S Devoe St	Lone Tree	52755	Johnson County	Lone Tree Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 629-4213	196	17	11.8	33.2%	169 (86.2%)	2 (1.0%)	18 (9.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.6%)	78.4	91^st of 576 public elementary schools	84.2%		76.9	91^st of 557 public elementary schools	83.7%		93.8	76.0	87.1	93.8	96.0	90.3	64.5	$10,488	$297	$10,191
Alexander Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3571 Sycamore St.	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1095	436	38	11.3	75.9%	98 (22.5%)	170 (39.0%)	139 (31.9%)	6 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	22 (5.0%)	11.4	523^rd of 576 public elementary schools	9.2%		17.1	482^nd of 557 public elementary schools	13.5%	41	53.7	63.0	46.6	59.7	47.8	48.3	41.4	$15,246	$1,427	$13,819
Grant Wood Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1930 Lakeside Dr	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1180	306	28	10.8	68.0%	61 (19.9%)	153 (50.0%)	70 (22.9%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.0%)	17 (5.6%)	11.6	522^nd of 576 public elementary schools	9.4%		7.9	520^th of 557 public elementary schools	6.6%	2	56.8	64.9	43.2	43.2	59.5	45.5	40.9	$15,646	$1,067	$14,579
Weber Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3850 Rohret Road	Iowa City	52246	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1170	456	42	10.7	55.5%	165 (36.2%)	212 (46.5%)	25 (5.5%)	28 (6.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	24 (5.3%)	27.8	466^th of 576 public elementary schools	19.1%		33.5	424^th of 557 public elementary schools	23.9%	42	52.9	65.6	61.2	67.6	68.8	62.7	53.7	$13,378	$562	$12,817
Mark Twain Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1355 DeForest Avenue	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1165	213	22	9.6	66.7%	75 (35.2%)	76 (35.7%)	49 (23.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (5.2%)	14.9	509^th of 576 public elementary schools	11.6%		23.3	462^nd of 557 public elementary schools	17.1%	47	52.0	66.7	60.0	60.0	54.2	35.0	40.0	$15,834	$1,165	$14,669
Ernest Horn Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	600 Koser Ave	Iowa City	52246	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1115	453	33	13.6	58.5%	152 (33.6%)	197 (43.5%)	26 (5.7%)	45 (9.9%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	29 (6.4%)	40.4	399^th of 576 public elementary schools	30.7%		37.6	398^th of 557 public elementary schools	28.5%	1	73.7	69.7	61.4	77.2	63.6	70.2	54.4	$14,000	$687	$13,313
Longfellow Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1130 Seymour Ave	Iowa City	52240	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1135	325	30	10.8	53.5%	143 (44.0%)	86 (26.5%)	66 (20.3%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (8.0%)	35.1	435^th of 576 public elementary schools	24.5%		37	401^st of 557 public elementary schools	28.0%	34	59.6	82.5	61.3	55.3	71.9	58.1	58.1	$13,112	$279	$12,833
Robert Lucas Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	830 Southlawn Dr	Iowa City	52245	Johnson County	Iowa City Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(319) 688-1140	245	18	13.5	49.4%	106 (43.3%)	82 (33.5%)	27 (11.0%)	4 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (10.6%)	18.7	493^rd of 576 public elementary schools	14.4%		34.5	420^th of 557 public elementary schools	24.6%	73	67.5	52.6	51.9	65.0	52.6	55.6	40.7	$14,649	$1,493	$13,155

Frequently Asked Questions about Highland Elementary School

What schools do graduates of Highland Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Highland Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Highland Middle School
High : Highland High School

What is the racial makeup of Highland Elementary School?

Students at Highland Elementary School are 92% White, 6% Hispanic, 1% African American.

How many students attend Highland Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 242 students attended Highland Elementary School.

Is Highland Elementary School a good school?

Highland Elementary School ranks in the bottom 23.6% of Iowa elementary schools.

What district is Highland Elementary School in?

Highland Community School District

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