Enrollment
311
Elementary
DISTRICT 213 · STATE 381
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PRAIRIE-HILLS ESD 144·NCES 172472002677
Highlands Elementary School
3420 Laurel Ln, Hazel Crest, IL 60429 · (708) 335-9773 · Cook County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL311 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
28.3:1
11 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.6:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
94%
291 students
DISTRICT 96% · STATE 56%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 23 | 7% |
| Kindergarten | 49 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 51 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 37 | 12% |
| Grade 3 | 55 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 38 | 12% |
| Grade 5 | 57 | 18% |
| Grade 6 | 1 | 0% |
Student demographics
18%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 37% · STATE 69% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Highlands Elementary School→Prairie-Hills Junior High School
Based on grade levels within Prairie-Hills ESD 144. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)English Language Arts
23.4%
IL avg 51.0% . +11.4pp since 2023
Math
15.6%
IL avg 37.9% . +9.1pp since 2023
What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 23 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 16 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Illinois schools, those numbers are about 51 and 38. Reading and writing scores are up about 11 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 9 points.
IAR + ISA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 23.4% | 15.6% |
| 2023-24 | 12.0% | 6.5% |
% Proficient (Levels 4-5), all students and all tested grades.
Source: IAR + ISA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
17.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
17.5%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+0.2pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 18% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 17% typical for Illinois schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Illinois's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Highlands Elementary School
Highlands Elementary School's state test result (17.7% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highlands Elementary School this school | 311 | 93.6% | 17.7% |
| James Farmer Jr. Elementary Chicago | 321 | 94.1% | 18.9% |
| Gresham Elementary School Chicago | 332 | 94.6% | 24.0% |
| Park Manor Elementary School Chicago | 313 | 92.0% | 15.0% |
| Ruggles Elementary School Chicago | 290 | 91.7% | 23.7% |
| Owens Community Academy Elementary School Chicago | 340 | 95.3% | 24.9% |
Matched among Illinois elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Highlands Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Illinois | In Cook County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 17.7% | #1,683 of 1,925 | #617 of 760 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 15.6% | #1,724 of 2,077 ▲ 65 | #604 of 829 ▲ 41 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 23.4% | #1,852 of 2,077 ▲ 19 | #722 of 829 ▲ 14 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 311 | #1,481 of 2,419 | #614 of 901 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 28.3:1 | #2,023 of 2,035 | #814 of 817 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 18.4% | #1,677 of 2,042 | #631 of 819 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 93.6% | #196 of 2,132 | #141 of 804 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -5.5% | #1,173 of 1,461 | #557 of 661 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
311
-7 (-2%) vs 2020
-45% since 1990-91, when it was 564
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 311 | 11 | 28.3:1 | 94% (291) |
| 2023-24 | 290 | 16 | 18.1:1 | 94% (273) |
| 2022-23 | 327 | 13 | 25.1:1 | 93% (304) |
| 2020-21 | 318 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 329 | 18 | 18.3:1 | 95% (313) |
| 2015-16 | 284 | 16 | 17.8:1 | 98% (277) |
| 2010-11 | 353 | 23 | 15.3:1 | 81% (285) |
| 2000-01 | 445 | 23 | 19.4:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 564 | 27 | 20.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Highlands Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 5% (329 to 311); teachers down 39% (18 to 11).
About Highlands Elementary School
Highlands Elementary School is a low-enrollment elementary school in Hazel Crest, Illinois, administered by Prairie-Hills ESD 144. The school has 311 students in 2024-25 across pre-K through 5.
Federal data list 9 schools in Prairie-Hills ESD 144, with 2,473 students enrolled.
Black students account for 90% of the school's enrollment. Beyond that, enrollment is 7% Hispanic and 3% multiracial. The Black share of the county population is lower, at 22%. On a 0 to 100 scale, the school's diversity index is 18, compared with 70 nationally.
With 11 full-time-equivalent teachers, the student-to-teacher ratio is about 28.3:1. The average for elementary schools in Illinois is 13.9:1, so this school has more students per teacher. Student poverty is often measured by lunch eligibility; at Highlands Elementary School, 94% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Public schools in Cook County average 66%.
Based on its free or reduced-price lunch share, the BeatsExpectations model predicts an average proficiency rate across its state test results of 17.5% for Highlands Elementary School. The school posts 17.7%, within a point of the prediction.
Five-year Census Bureau estimates for Cook County show that the median household earns about $83,498 a year, about 43% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 10%. Across Cook County, 1,406 public schools serve about 697,934 students.
About 0.4 miles separate Highlands Elementary School from the closest public school, Nob Hill Elementary School. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. On average proficiency, Highlands Elementary School is 5th of 7 nearby schools with test data.
The school's setting, by NCES definition, is Suburb: Large: in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
Highlands Elementary School had 318 students in 2020-21 and 311 in 2024-25, nearly the same.
This page collects posts and questions about Highlands Elementary School, such as open houses, carpools, and field trips. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
Cook County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
5,182,090
Census ACS
Median income
$83,498
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
43%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
1,406
697,934 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Prairie-Hills ESD 144
- Prairie-Hills Junior High SchoolMiddle · 766 students
- Mae Jemison SchoolElementary · 368 students
- Markham Park Elementary SchoolElementary · 292 students
- Chateaux SchoolElementary · 249 students
- Fieldcrest Elementary SchoolElementary · 217 students
- Nob Hill Elementary SchoolElementary · 164 students
Other schools in Hazel Crest
- Jesse C White Learning AcademyElementary · 425 students
- Mae Jemison SchoolElementary · 368 students
- Chateaux SchoolElementary · 249 students
Other Highlands Elementary schools
24 other US public schools in 13 states are named Highlands Elementary. Highlands Elementary School is the 22nd largest of the 25.
- Highlands Elementary SchoolLa Grange Highlands, IL · 565 students
- Highlands Elementary SchoolNaperville, IL · 510 students
- Highlands Elementary SchoolHIGHLANDS, TX · 868 students
- Highlands ElementarySaugus, CA · 666 students
- HIGHLANDS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLIMMOKALEE, FL · 599 students
Nearby schools
- Nob Hill Elementary School0.4 mi · 164
- Hillcrest High School0.8 mi · 1,100
- Mae Jemison School0.8 mi · 368
- Prairie-Hills STEAM Academy1.0 mi · 102
- Markham Park Elementary School1.0 mi · 292
- Primary Learning Center1.0 mi · 4
Frequently asked questions
About Highlands Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Highlands Elementary School?
Highlands Elementary School enrolls approximately 311 students in grades PK-05.
Is Highlands Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Highlands Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Highlands Elementary School have?
Highlands Elementary School employs 11 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 28.3:1.
What is the student diversity at Highlands Elementary School?
Student demographics at Highlands Elementary School are roughly 0% White, 7% Hispanic, 90% Black, 3% Two or more.
What district is Highlands Elementary School in?
Highlands Elementary School is part of Prairie-Hills ESD 144.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.