Central Heights School

Central Heights School is one of the expansive elementary schools in Billings, Montana, part of Billings Elem, with 285 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 5. That puts it 71% above the typical public school in Montana, which averages around 167 students.

Billings Elem comprises 29 schools with combined enrollment of 11,377 students; Central Heights School is among them.

On the student-mix side, Central Heights School logs that White students make up the majority at 63%. Other groups include 19% Hispanic, 11% Native American, 6% multiracial. That is considerably less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 86%.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 19 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 15.4:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 11.9:1 average. About 58% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. By comparison, Yellowstone County runs at roughly 48%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully above the surrounding baseline.

In the area at large, community-level numbers for Yellowstone County indicate median household income runs about $76,570, 34% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 7%. Across Yellowstone County's 68 public schools (combined enrollment of about 23,853 students), Central Heights School is one campus in the mix.

Billings West High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.4 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools.

Geographically, the school is in an urban area.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Central Heights School has ticked up 7%, going from 267 students in 2018 to 285 in 2025. The White share of enrollment declined from 75% to 63% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio widened from 13.3:1 in 2018 to 15.4:1 today.

On allk12, posts here usually surface around pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Members of the school community can share what they know.