It is a charter school whose focus is a learning approach in which all students must demonstrate proficiency in a selection of standards.

Highland Academy is a member of the Reinventing Schools Coalition, which is a division of Marzano Resources.

Highland Academy also celebrates respect on a regular basis through the SuperCORE process.

For example, in 2016 the graduating class consisted of three juniors (all of whom were recipients of the UA Jr Scholars Award) and three fifth-year seniors who benefited from having extra time.

These students do not count towards the overall yearly graduation rate and account for misrepresentative data.