Enrollment
318
Elementary
DISTRICT 399 · STATE 313
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·TOPEKA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 201226001445
Highland Park Central
2717 SE Illinois Ave, Topeka, KS 66605 · (785) 235-7000 · Shawnee County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL318 STUDENTS
C-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 18% of Kansas public elementary schools
- DTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Kansas public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
12.5:1
25 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.4:1 · STATE 13.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
94%
298 students
DISTRICT 79% · STATE 51%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 54 | 17% |
| Grade 1 | 57 | 18% |
| Grade 2 | 63 | 20% |
| Grade 3 | 53 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 43 | 14% |
| Grade 5 | 48 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (54) is 13% larger than its 5th grade class (48).
Student demographics
69%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 72% · STATE 58% · 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
Test scores
KAP 2024-25 . % Meeting + ExceedingEnglish Language Arts
28.7%
KS avg 44.5%
Math
24.3%
KS avg 38.8%
What this means: On the KAP, Kansas's statewide test, about 29 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 24 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Kansas schools, those numbers are about 45 and 39.
KAP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 28.7% | 24.3% |
| 2023-24 | 21.7% | 9.1% |
% Meeting + Exceeding, all students and all tested grades. Kansas set new KAP cut scores in spring 2025, so results from 2023-24 and earlier are not comparable with later years.
Source: KAP. 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
20.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
17.3%
based on KS schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+3.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 21% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 17% typical for Kansas 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 Kansas'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 Highland Park Central
Highland Park Central's state test result (20.9% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highland Park Central this school | 318 | 93.7% | 20.9% |
| Gardiner Elem Wichita | 405 | 95.3% | 13.8% |
| Washington Elem Junction City | 350 | 91.7% | 25.3% |
| Stanley Elem Wichita | 439 | 90.4% | 16.4% |
| Midland Trail Kansas City | 495 | 88.3% | 36.3% |
| Harry Street Elem Wichita | 310 | 94.5% | 11.2% |
Matched among Kansas 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 Highland Park Central ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Kansas | In Shawnee County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 20.9% | #565 of 625 | #28 of 30 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 24.3% | #508 of 625 | #24 of 30 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 28.7% | #559 of 625 | #28 of 30 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 318 | #343 of 714 | #25 of 30 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.5:1 | #165 of 539 | #9 of 29 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 68.9% | #59 of 540 | #8 of 29 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 93.7% | #22 of 658 | #1 of 30 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -8.6% | #270 of 377 | #15 of 22 |
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
318
+21 (+7%) vs 2020
-29% since 1990-91, when it was 447
Student : Teacher
12.5:1
was 10.2:1
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 | 318 | 25.4 | 12.5:1 | 94% (298) |
| 2023-24 | 308 | 24.9 | 12.4:1 | 93% (285) |
| 2022-23 | 308 | 26.3 | 11.7:1 | 92% (283) |
| 2020-21 | 297 | 29 | 10.2:1 | 94% (278) |
| 2017-18 | 348 | 29.2 | 11.9:1 | 92% (319) |
| 2015-16 | 343 | 26 | 13.2:1 | 95% (327) |
| 2010-11 | 388 | 28 | 13.9:1 | 93% (359) |
| 2000-01 | 340 | 26 | 13.1:1 | 82% (278) |
| 1990-91 | 447 | 26 | 17.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Highland Park Central.
Since 2017-18: students down 9% (348 to 318); teachers down 13% (29.2 to 25.4).
About Highland Park Central
Highland Park Central is a public medium-sized elementary school in Topeka, Kansas. Enrollment in 2024-25 was 318 students in kindergarten through 5.
Highland Park Central is in Topeka Public Schools, a district with 11,695 students across 25 schools.
At Highland Park Central, the largest share of students is Hispanic, at 47%. The school is also 21% Black, 16% White, and 15% multiracial. That is higher than the 14% Hispanic share among all Shawnee County residents. The school's diversity index is 69%, meaning two students picked at random have a 69% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
The teaching staff at Highland Park Central is 25.4 full-time-equivalent teachers, and the ratio is 12.5:1. That matches the 13.2:1 average for elementary schools in Kansas fairly closely. The percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch is 94%. The 54% average for public schools in Shawnee County is 40 points lower.
allk12 grades Highland Park Central a C-. The grade compares the school only with Kansas public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
The allk12 BeatsExpectations score for Highland Park Central is +3.6 points: 20.9% actual, 17.3% predicted.
In the county around the school, Shawnee County, the median household income is $67,104, roughly 32% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 9% of residents live below the federal poverty line. There are 54 public schools in Shawnee County, enrolling about 26,294 students in all.
Nearest public school: Highland Park High, about 0.7 miles away. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. On average proficiency, Highland Park Central is 3rd of 8 nearby schools with test data.
The federal government classifies Highland Park Central's location as City: Mid-size.
Enrollment is up 7% from 2020-21, when Highland Park Central had 297 students, to 2024-25, when it had 318. The ratio of students to teachers went from 10.2:1 to 12.5:1 over the same years.
Questions about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news can be posted here. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Shawnee County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
178,025
Census ACS
Median income
$67,104
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
32%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
54
26,294 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Topeka Public Schools
- Topeka HighHigh · 1,578 students
- Topeka West HighHigh · 971 students
- Highland Park HighHigh · 835 students
- Jardine ElementaryElementary · 729 students
- Ross ElementaryElementary · 563 students
- Jardine Middle SchoolMiddle · 508 students
Other schools in Topeka
- Washburn Rural HighHigh · 1,878 students
- Topeka HighHigh · 1,578 students
- Seaman HighHigh · 1,190 students
- Topeka West HighHigh · 971 students
- Washburn Rural Middle SchoolMiddle · 966 students
- Highland Park HighHigh · 835 students
Nearby schools
- Highland Park High0.7 mi · 835
- Ross Elementary0.8 mi · 563
- Eisenhower Middle School0.8 mi · 440
- Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet School1.8 mi · 447
- Topeka Virtual School1.8 mi · 384
- Avondale Academy1.8 mi · 23
Frequently asked questions
About Highland Park CentralWhat is the total enrollment at Highland Park Central?
Highland Park Central enrolls approximately 318 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does Highland Park Central serve?
Highland Park Central serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Highland Park Central?
Approximately 12.5:1 students per teacher at Highland Park Central.
How diverse is Highland Park Central?
Highland Park Central reports a student body of 16% White, 47% Hispanic, 21% Black, 1% Asian, 15% Two or more.
What district is Highland Park Central in?
Highland Park Central is part of Topeka Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.