Among the many ethnicities represented in Highland County schools, non-Hispanic white was the most prevalent among the county students in the 2024-25 school year, according to reports from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce.
Of the 6,288 students attending Highland County schools, 91.9% were non-Hispanic white. Multiracial students were the second most common ethnicity, making up 4.5% of Highland County student body.
In the previous school year, non-Hispanic white students were also the most common group in Highland County, representing 91.9% of the student body.
In the 2024-25 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county dropped 2.6% when compared to the previous year.
Public school enrollment in Ohio fell to 1.47 million students in fiscal year 2025, down 1%, marking the largest drop since fiscal year 2022.
According to a report from the Ohio Legislative Service Commission, enrollment fell most sharply in rural and small-town districts. In contrast, joint vocational districts recorded growth, with chartered nonpublic schools recording the largest enrollment increases.
According to an analysis by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Ohio students have not fully recovered from pandemic-related learning losses. In the 2024-25 school year, about 55.3% of students were proficient in math and 60% in reading, both several points below 2018-19 levels.
Ohio ranks 23rd nationally in K-12 school expenditures, with public schools spending $16,687 per pupil for a total of $28.05 billion annually. Overall, costs exceed available funding by nearly $460 million.
| School name | Most prevalent ethnic group | % of Total Student Population | Total enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield Local High School | Non-Hispanic White | 95.7% | 208 |
| Fairfield Local Elementary School | Non-Hispanic White | 95.4% | 433 |
| Whiteoak High School | Non-Hispanic White | 95.3% | 169 |
| Fairfield Local Middle School | Non-Hispanic White | 95.2% | 187 |
| Lynchburg-Clay Elementary School | Non-Hispanic White | 94.9% | 474 |
| Lynchburg-Clay High School | Non-Hispanic White | 94.7% | 263 |
| Whiteoak Junior High School | Non-Hispanic White | 94.6% | 93 |
| Bright Elementary School | Non-Hispanic White | 94% | 430 |
| Greenfield Middle School | Non-Hispanic White | 93.7% | 410 |
| Lynchburg-Clay Middle School | Non-Hispanic White | 93.7% | 238 |
| Greenfield Elementary School | Non-Hispanic White | 92.7% | 564 |
| McClain High School | Non-Hispanic White | 92.3% | 496 |
| Hillsboro Intermediate School | Non-Hispanic White | 90.6% | 307 |
| Hillsboro High School | Non-Hispanic White | 88.1% | 538 |
| Rainsboro Elementary School | Non-Hispanic White | 87.9% | 223 |
| Hillsboro Early Childhood Center | Non-Hispanic White | 87.7% | 454 |
| Hillsboro Primary School | Non-Hispanic White | 87.5% | 343 |
| Hillsboro Middle School | Non-Hispanic White | 87.3% | 458 |
Information in this article was obtained from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce. The source data can be found here.
