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Highlands Intermediate School

Q: Is Highlands Intermediate School a good school?

Highlands Intermediate School ranks 11 th of 84 Hawaii middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 7-8

11^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 84 Hawaii Middle Schools

Better than 87% of Hawaii middle schools

Summary

Highlands Intermediate School is a public middle school in Pearl City, Hawaii, serving 842 students in grades 7-8. The school consistently ranks among the top middle schools in the state, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger and strong academic performance that exceeds the state averages in English Language Arts, Math, and Science.

Highlands Intermediate School's academic success is particularly notable in certain student subgroups, with the school ranking 4th and 21st out of all Hawaii middle schools for its Asian and White student populations, respectively. However, the school's performance for African American, Hispanic, and Special Education students is more average compared to other middle schools in the state. The school also has a relatively low student-teacher ratio of 15.5, lower than many nearby schools. Despite its overall academic achievements, Highlands Intermediate School's chronic absenteeism rate of 19.0% is higher than some top-performing schools in the area, such as Moanalua Middle School (10.0%) and Mililani Middle School (15.0%).

Highlands Intermediate School's consistent high performance and strong academic outcomes suggest the school has established effective teaching practices and a supportive learning environment. However, the school may need to focus on addressing the needs of its underperforming student subgroups and improving student attendance to ensure all students have the opportunity to succeed. The school's location in the Pearl City/Ewa Beach area, which is home to several other high-performing middle schools, also indicates that families in this region have access to a concentration of strong educational options.

824

Students ?

14.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,658

Per pupil spending ?

32.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1460 Hoolaulea St
Pearl City, HI 96782

(808) 453-6480

District: Hawaii Department of Education

Students who attend Highlands Intermediate School usually attend:

High:

Pearl City High School

Feeder schools for Highlands Intermediate School:

Elementary:	Kanoelani Elementary School
	Lehua Elementary School
	Manana Elementary School
	Momilani Elementary School
	More...
	Palisades Elementary School
	Pearl City Elementary School
	Pearl City Highlands School
	Waiau Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Asian:

34.7%

Two or more races:

27.3%

Pacific Islander:

17.7%

See top rated Hawaii middle schools

Compare Highlands Intermediate School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 85th percentile in 2015 → 87th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranks in the top 13% of Hawaii middle schools

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Hawaii Department of Education

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school59%

11^th of 84

Hawaii public middle schools ?

Top 13%▲ up 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Hawaii Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

8^th of 40Middle Schools in the Hawaii Department of Education

1^st of 1Hawaii Department of Education among Hawaii 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	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	75.0	11 of 84	86.9%	★★★★☆
2024	72.6	12 of 89	86.5%	★★★★☆
2023	85.3	9 of 73	87.7%	★★★★☆
2022	77.1	13 of 72	81.9%	★★★★☆
2021	74.3	15 of 73	79.5%	★★★★☆
2019	80.0	12 of 70	82.9%	★★★★☆
2018	73.7	14 of 67	79.1%	★★★★☆
2017	69.6	8 of 82	90.2%	★★★★★
2016	86.1	8 of 73	89.0%	★★★★★
2015	81.1	11 of 72	84.7%	★★★★☆
2013	77.1	8 of 76	89.5%	★★★★★
2012	74.6	11 of 73	84.9%	★★★★☆
2011	63.5	20 of 71	71.8%	★★★★☆
2010	68.4	15 of 65	76.9%	★★★★☆
2009	69.8	15 of 68	77.9%	★★★★☆
2008	82.6	7 of 46	84.8%	★★★★☆
2007	79.8	10 of 71	85.9%	★★★★☆
2006	80.5	8 of 69	88.4%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	41.4	10 of 15	33.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	57.7	26 of 71	63.4%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	74.4	4 of 55	92.7%	★★★★★
2024	74.5	12 of 87	86.2%	★★★★☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	36.9	17 of 52	67.3%	★★★★☆
2024	36.6	33 of 81	59.3%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2024	30.8	47 of 68	30.9%	★★☆☆☆

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	54.4	12 of 52	76.9%	★★★★☆
2024	45.9	31 of 81	61.7%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	22.0	38 of 59	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	45.9	34 of 89	61.8%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Hawaii percentile	Rating
2025	52.4	21 of 74	71.6%	★★★★☆
2024	61.6	20 of 86	76.7%	★★★★☆

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)

Asian (2025)93rd percentile+6 vs school

Pacific Islander (2025)77th percentile-10 vs school

White (2025)72nd percentile-15 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)67th percentile-20 vs school

Special Education (2025)36th percentile-51 vs school

African American (2025)33rd percentile-54 vs school

Hispanic (2024)31st percentile-56 vs school

By subject vs Hawaii (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts69%

Mathematics55%

Science53%

★

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Schools Near Highlands Intermediate School

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				HSA Science (2025)	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts (2025)	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (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	HSA Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Highlands Intermediate School	Public	7-8	1460 Hoolaulea St	Pearl City	96782	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 453-6480	824	58	14.2	32.2%	26 (3.2%)	5 (0.6%)	136 (16.5%)	286 (34.7%)	0 (0.0%)	146 (17.7%)	225 (27.3%)	75	11^th of 84 public middle schools	86.9%		72.6	12^th of 89 public middle schools	86.5%	1	53.0	69.0	55.0	$15,658	$1,203	$14,455
Aiea Intermediate School	Public	7-8	99-600 Kulawea St	Aiea	96701	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(808) 483-7230	470	37	12.7	52.1%	40 (8.5%)	9 (1.9%)	69 (14.7%)	140 (29.8%)	2 (0.4%)	125 (26.6%)	85 (18.1%)	54.9	21^st of 84 public middle schools	75.0%		64.1	15^th of 89 public middle schools	83.1%	6	40.0	59.0	47.0	$17,783	$2,151	$15,632
Waipahu Intermediate School	Public	7-8	94-455 Farrington Hwy	Waipahu	96797	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(808) 675-0177	1,113	76	14.6	57.2%	8 (0.7%)	3 (0.3%)	99 (8.9%)	693 (62.3%)	1 (0.1%)	196 (17.6%)	113 (10.2%)	62	16^th of 84 public middle schools	81.0%		48.9	30^th of 89 public middle schools	66.3%	14	51.0	63.0	42.0	$15,691	$1,517	$14,174
Aliamanu Middle School	Public	7-8	3271 Salt Lake Blvd	Honolulu	96818	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 421-4100	755	50	15.1	28.7%	206 (27.3%)	55 (7.3%)	148 (19.6%)	157 (20.8%)	2 (0.3%)	62 (8.2%)	125 (16.6%)	61.9	17^th of 84 public middle schools	79.8%		61.1	19^th of 89 public middle schools	78.7%	2	47.0	62.0	47.0	$15,871	$1,360	$14,511
Mililani Middle School	Public	6-8	95-1140 Lehiwa Dr	Mililani	96789	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 626-7355	1,635	101	16.1	21.2%	111 (6.8%)	15 (0.9%)	358 (21.9%)	487 (29.8%)	0 (0.0%)	152 (9.3%)	512 (31.3%)	79.3	8^th of 84 public middle schools	90.5%		75	9^th of 89 public middle schools	89.9%	1	59.0	68.0	57.0	$14,936	$973	$13,963
Moanalua Middle School	Public	7-8	1289 Mahiole St	Honolulu	96819	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 831-7850	768	50	15.5	24.2%	101 (13.2%)	30 (3.9%)	125 (16.3%)	286 (37.2%)	0 (0.0%)	63 (8.2%)	163 (21.2%)	90.8	2^nd of 84 public middle schools	97.6%		87.4	4^th of 89 public middle schools	95.5%	2	74.0	77.0	62.0	$14,589	$1,108	$13,481
Ilima Intermediate School	Public	7-8	91-884 Fort Weaver Rd	Ewa Beach	96706	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(808) 689-1250	725	50	14.5	60.3%	32 (4.4%)	6 (0.8%)	130 (17.9%)	275 (37.9%)	0 (0.0%)	138 (19.0%)	144 (19.9%)	46.4	24^th of 84 public middle schools	71.4%		41.2	36^th of 89 public middle schools	59.6%	12	44.0	55.0	35.0	$14,550	$1,293	$13,257
Honouliuli Middle School	Public	6-8	91-559 Maunakapu St	Ewa Beach	96706	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 307-7800	793	54	14.6	45.4%	45 (5.7%)	11 (1.4%)	214 (27.0%)	141 (17.8%)	1 (0.1%)	187 (23.6%)	194 (24.5%)	30	46^th of 84 public middle schools	45.2%		28.9	48^th of 89 public middle schools	46.1%	2	34.0	50.0	25.0
Kulia Academy	Public, Charter	6	2340 Omilo Lane	Honolulu	96819	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(808) 551-1413	98	4	28.0	24.5%	4 (4.1%)	3 (3.1%)	16 (16.3%)	28 (28.6%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (20.4%)	27 (27.6%)								(n/a)		80.0	75.0
Ewa Makai Middle School	Public	6-8	91-6291 Kapolei Pkwy	Ewa Beach	96706	Honolulu County	Hawaii Department of Education	No	(n/a)	No	No	(808) 687-9500	1,221	79	15.4	30.3%	102 (8.4%)	31 (2.5%)	247 (20.2%)	398 (32.6%)	0 (0.0%)	138 (11.3%)	305 (25.0%)	52.8	22^nd of 84 public middle schools	73.8%		54.2	27^th of 89 public middle schools	69.7%	5	50.0	57.0	36.0	$15,325	$1,405	$13,920

Frequently Asked Questions about Highlands Intermediate School

Is Highlands Intermediate School a good school?

Highlands Intermediate School ranks 11^th of 84 Hawaii middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Highlands Intermediate School?

Students at Highlands Intermediate School are 35% Asian, 27% Two or more races, 18% Pacific Islander, 17% Hispanic, 3% White.

What high school do graduates of Highlands Intermediate School attend?

Students who attend Highlands Intermediate School usually go on to attend Pearl City High School

How many students attend Highlands Intermediate School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 824 students attended Highlands Intermediate School.

What district is Highlands Intermediate School in?

Hawaii Department of Education

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