South Ohio News

There were 528 first grade students enrolled in Highland County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 15.3% more than the previous year, according to reports from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce.

Hillsboro Early Childhood Center welcomed most of the first grade students in the county, registering 189 students.

Within Highland County schools, the highest student count was found in first grade, with the smallest class sizes seen in pre-kindergarten.

Statewide, Highland County ranked 52nd in enrollment numbers, with a total of 6,546 students enrolled in the 2022-23 school year. It was also ranked 52nd the year before.

In 2022, Ohio saw an average student-to-teacher ratio of approximately 1:15, which is an improvement for the state and is lower than the national average of 1:16.

Despite the apparent improvement, this positive trend is overshadowed by a general decline in public school enrollments, which was accelerated by the pandemic. This decline, aligned with the steady number of teachers in the state over the last 10 years, has led to low student-to-teacher ratios.

School name	# of 1st Grade Students Enrolled	% of Student Body	Total Enrollment
Hillsboro Early Childhood Center	189	42.8	442
Greenfield Elementary School	100	17.5	573
Lynchburg-Clay Elementary School	74	14.1	524
Fairfield Local Elementary School	70	15.7	447
Bright Elementary School	67	14.6	458
Rainsboro Elementary School	28	14.1	199
Hillsboro High School	0	0	632
Hillsboro Intermediate School	0	0	316
Hillsboro Primary School	0	0	310
Hillsboro Middle School	0	0	483
McClain High School	0	0	527
Greenfield Middle School	0	0	400
Whiteoak Junior High School	0	0	81
Whiteoak High School	0	0	174
Fairfield Local High School	0	0	249
Fairfield Local Middle School	0	0	199
Lynchburg-Clay High School	0	0	301
Lynchburg-Clay Middle School	0	0	235