Highlands Elementary

Located at 1326 Pennsylvania Blvd., in Concord, California, Highlands Elementary is a moderately sized elementary-level community that serves 512 students (grades K through 5), one of the schools within Mt. Diablo Unified.

Highlands Elementary is one of 50 schools operated by Mt. Diablo Unified, a district that works with 29,210 students overall.

On demographics, Highlands Elementary shows that the most-represented group is White (33%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest reads as 29% Hispanic, 20% multiracial, 17% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 41% White, putting the school's mix meaningfully less White than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, The school employs 19 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 26.9:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 22.3:1 average. An estimated 32% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. By comparison, Contra Costa County runs at roughly 45%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully below the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Highlands Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 60.2%; this one delivers 49.3%.

In the broader community, community-level numbers for Contra Costa County indicate median household income runs about $127,229, 45% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 6%. Across Contra Costa County's 280 public schools (combined enrollment of about 167,423 students), Highlands Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: Pine Hollow Middle, around 0.1 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Highlands Elementary ranks 3rd on composite proficiency, higher than the local average of 47.2%.

Highlands Elementary operates from an outer-ring location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count fell 12%: 583 students in 2018 compared to 512 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 44% to 33% across the same window. Class-load math has grew: from 23.8:1 in 2018 to 26.9:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, the feed for Highlands Elementary typically covers pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Members of the school community can share what they know.