The Staff and Teacher Award Recognition (STAR) program honors a Highland teacher, staff or community member for their outstanding achievements, while providing vital support to Highland Schools. Recipients are presented with a certificate and gift. Proceeds from the program help to fund unique and innovative learning opportunities for students and the community. Deadline to place your order is Friday, May 28 with delivery the week of June 7. Please order your STAR Awards HERE!

Highland High School continues its impressive climb in state and national rankings in the 2021 Best High Schools, released by U.S. News on April 27.

Highland High School is now ranked #10 out of 123 high schools in the Cleveland Metro area, #34 among Ohio’s 872 high schools and #881 out of 17,857 high schools nationally. In 2020, HHS was ranked #13, #36 and #1,013 respectively.

"These are incredible gains despite a year overshadowed by so much change and uncertainty for our students, staff and families," stated Highland Schools Superintendent Catherine Aukerman. "Yet collectively we rose to the challenge and persevered. This is not only a great accomplishment for Highland High School, but for the entire district and community. A strong school district equals a strong community, and we are proud to once again be recognized as one of the best."

U.S. News evaluated over 24,000 public high schools nationwide, with more than 18,000 schools ranked. The highest ranked public schools are those whose students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math and reading state assessments, passed a diverse array of college-level exams and graduated in high proportions. Learn more: https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/ohio/districts/highland-local/highland-high-school-15628

2021 Highland Youth Athletic Summer Camps have been announced! All dates and times are listed in the attached flyer, as well as instructions on how to register. 2021 Athletic Summer Camps

For information on the Mike Gibbons Football Camps, please click on the following links:

• Youth Football Camp
• Middle School Football Camp 

Notice. Notice is hereby given that the Board of Education of the Highland Local School District (the “Board”) will offer for sale at public auction barns (“Barns”) located upon the real property at 1724 Wilbur Road, Medina, OH 44256 and 1157 Ridge Road, Hinckley, OH 44233. The auction will be for the Barns only and not for any of the land upon which the Barns are located. The public auction for the Barns will be conducted at the Highland High School Media Center located at 4150 Ridge Road, Medina, OH 44256, and shall commence at 3 p.m., ET, on Thursday, May 13, 2021.

Highland's Safety Week will not be offered this summer for incoming kindergarten students. Instead, the district will incorporate safety lessons into the kindergarten curriculum when students return in September for the 2021-22 school year. The lessons will introduce and reinforce safety concepts to students who are broadening their world as they begin elementary school. DARE Officer Sharon Centner, along with the elementary teachers, will instruct students on stranger danger, bike safety, playground safety, school bus safety and more.

Our current kindergarten students will receive these same safety lessons prior to the end of this school year, since they did not have the opportunity to attend Safety Week in 2020 due to Covid restrictions. 

The district hopes to bring back the traditional Safety Week in the summer of 2022!

A recent financial audit of the Highland Local School District by Auditor of State Keith Faber's office has returned a clean audit report. The district’s excellent record keeping has again earned it the Auditor of State Award with Distinction. The award was presented to Highland Treasurer Neil Barnes and Superintendent Catherine Aukerman on March 24.

Entities that receive the award meet the following criteria of a “clean” audit report:

• The entity must file timely financial reports with the Auditor of State’s office in the form of a CAFR (Comprehensive Annual Financial Report);
• The audit report does not contain any findings for recovery, material citations, material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, Single Audit findings or questioned costs;