Grayson Highlands

As a minimally staffed elementary-level community in Troutdale, Virginia, Grayson Highlands works with 156 students from grades pre-K through 7, run under Grayson County Public Schools. By comparison, Virginia's public schools average about 499 students each, so Grayson Highlands sits 69% smaller than that benchmark.

Within Grayson County Public Schools, which oversees 6 schools and 1,561 students, Grayson Highlands is one campus in the system.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Grayson Highlands logs that the student body is overwhelmingly White (90%). Other groups include 4% Hispanic. Compared to Grayson County overall, the school's racial mix sits in roughly the same range.

On the resource side, On paper, Grayson Highlands has 15 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 10.7:1. The state averages around 13.8:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 96% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

With demographic context factored in, Grayson Highlands is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 62.1%; this one delivers 82.4%, a residual of +20.3 points.

In the surrounding community, ACS estimates for Grayson County put median household income runs about $47,730, 16% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Grayson Highlands is one of 7 public schools in Grayson County (combined enrollment of about 1,561 students).

The closest other public school is Sugar Grove Elementary, roughly 8.4 miles away. Within ten miles, there are 2 other public schools, a sparser pattern than typical urban areas. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Grayson Highlands ranks 1st on composite proficiency, higher than the local average of 69.9%.

Geographically, the school is in a rural area.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Grayson Highlands has grew 7%, going from 146 students in 2018 to 156 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share ticked down from 97% to 90%. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 14.7:1 in 2018 to 10.7:1 today.

Within the allk12 community for this school, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.