Community CollegePublic

Highland Community College

Freeport, Illinois·Public, 2-year·Great Lakes·highland.edu
6-yr Graduation
45%
Total enrollment
1,360
peer median 1,741
Avg net price
$5,359
+$85 vs Community College
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Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
45%
Full-time retention
70%

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 45 Title IV programs, 3 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 42 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
45
Passing
3
6.7% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

45programs
  • Passing3 · 6.7%
  • No Data42 · 93.3%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
1
Safe
1
No data
42

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

3
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+9.9%
$38,237 vs $34,808
Biological and Physical Sciences
Associate Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
+18.4%
$41,202 vs $34,808
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+112.9%
$74,116 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

1
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
17%
$12,525 debt · $74,116 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1973Next review Aug 2028

Programmatic accreditations · 1

Action history · 5

  1. Nov 2022Grant Substantive Change: Other
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  2. Apr 2022Grant Substantive Change: Other
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  3. Mar 2021Initial Accreditation
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  4. Nov 2019Accreditation Reaffirmed: Warning Removed
    Higher Learning Commission
  5. Nov 2017Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: Warning
    Higher Learning Commission

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$3,506
$30–48k$4,321
$48–75k$6,903
$75–110k$11,274
$110k+$12,397

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$5,359
vs Community College median $5,275
Federal loans
6.3%
In-state tuition
$4,696
Out-of-state
$7,120

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 564 students received $2.4M in Pell grants, alongside $331K in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
564
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$2.4M
$2,396,850 total
Direct Loans
$331K
102 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
20
1k
21
0k
22
1k
23
1k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$157K
51 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$174K
51 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 172 borrowers who entered repayment, 7 (4.0%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
4.0%
+1.7pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
172
Defaulted
7
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
18.7%
2017
12.3%
2018
10.0%
2019
4.0%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Highland Community College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs49
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

191 total completions
01Liberal Arts
8846.1%
02Multi/Interdisciplinary
6031.4%
03Health Professions
2312.0%
04Agriculture
84.2%
05Family/Consumer Sci
42.1%
06Business
31.6%
07Engineering Tech
21.0%
08Visual/Performing Arts
10.5%
09Mechanic
10.5%
10Engineering
10.5%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
1,360
12-mo unduplicated
3,031
Undergraduate
3,031
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
44%1,319
Women
56%1,712

Race / ethnicity composition

White
68.6%
Black
13.3%
Hispanic
7.1%
Two or more
4.2%
Non-resident
3.5%
Unknown
1.9%
Asian
0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.2%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
96
71 M · 25 W
Women athletes
26.0%
Athletic aid
$224K
Total student aid
Budget
$897K
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$125K
$99K
Recruiting expense
$9K
$6K
Head-coach salaries
$7K
$8K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 6

Baseball
36 M ·
$112K
Basketball
14 M · 13 W
$512K
Volleyball
· 14 W
$71K
Softball
· 12 W
$78K
Golf
5 M ·
$44K
Cross Country
3 M · 1 W
$21K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.00
0 offenses · 1,184 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago0.001 yr ago0.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
0
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
0
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

No criminal offenses reported.

By location

0total

    VAWA offenses

    0
    Domestic violence
    0
    Dating violence
    0
    Stalking
    0 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

    Hate crimes by bias

    No hate crimes reported.

    Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

    CategoryArrestsReferrals
    Weapons00
    Drugs00
    Liquor00

    Residence-hall fires

    No residence-hall fires reported.

    Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

    Student-faculty ratio

    Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

    Student-to-faculty
    13.0:1
    Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
    46

    Highland Community College vs Peer comparison

    The peer institutions Highland Community College selected for federal comparison reporting.

    GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
    This institutionPeer median

    A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

    Carnegie
    SubjectHighland Community College
    45%1,360$5,359Community College
    Danville Area Community College
    2,297$2,943Community College
    Shawnee Community College
    1,156$4,542Community College
    Rend Lake College
    2,015$7,309Community College
    Sauk Valley Community College
    1,467$8,388Community College
    Kankakee Community College
    2,564$5,190Community College
    Peer group median45%1,741$5,275

    Frequently asked questions about Highland Community College

    Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Highland Community College.

    What is the graduation rate at Highland Community College?

    Highland Community College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 45% per the latest IPEDS.

    How many students attend Highland Community College?

    Highland Community College reports a total enrollment of 1,360 students per the latest IPEDS.

    What is the average net price at Highland Community College?

    The average net price at Highland Community College is $5,359 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

    Where is Highland Community College located?

    Highland Community College is located in Freeport, Illinois 61032-9341.

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