Highline Public Schools


Highline Public Schools is a public school system in the state of Washington, headquartered in Burien. As of October 2007, it serves 17,331 students and has 997 teachers. Highline serves the cities of Burien, Des Moines, and SeaTac as well as areas of unincorporated King County such as White Center and Boulevard Park.

Structure

Highline consists of four main "service areas", Evergreen, Highline, Mount Rainier, and Tyee, which once represented the district's four high schools. Students in the Highline and Mount Rainier service areas generally attend the area's high school; students in the Evergreen and Tyee service areas attend one of the service area's three small schools. Each service area also contains one middle school which acts as a feeder to the area's high school. The four service areas are further divided into separate areas corresponding to the district's elementary schools, which also act as feeders to the area's middle school.
The district's current superintendent is Susan Enfield. The school board consists of five members: Bernie Dorsey, Michael D. Spear, Joe Van, Angelica Alvarez and Tyrone Curry Sr.

History

The district's first school, Highline High School, opened in 1924. Evergreen High School, Glacier High School, Mount Rainier High School, and Tyee High School were added at later times to compensate for the district's growing population.
During the 1970s, enrollment in the district declined due to the impacts of the Boeing Bust, The Port of Seattle acquiring neighborhoods due to increases in jet noise from Sea-Tac Airport, and levy failures. Between 1975 and 1980, one high school, 5 junior high schools, and 14 elementary schools were closed. In 1980, the remaining junior high schools were converted into middle schools.

In the mid-2000s, Highline commenced a major effort to reverse its schools' declining performance. The most significant aspect of this effort was the conversion of Evergreen and Tyee into three small schools each. Highline and Mount Rainier underwent similar programs, however each remains a single comprehensive high school. In the same time frame, Aviation High School and Highline Big Picture, two specialized schools, opened.

Schools

High schools

Zoned
  1. Academy of Citizenship and Empowerment; Tyee Educational Complex
  2. Global Connections High School; Tyee Educational Complex
  3. Odyssey - The Essential School; Tyee Educational Complex