Tuesday, April 22, 2014

2014 US News & World Report's Best High School List

Each year, US News & World Report releases their Best Public High Schools In The Nation list ranked by state.  The 2014 report is hot off the presses and has everyone buzzing.


The U.S. News rankings include data of more than 19,400 public high schools in 50 states and the District of Columbia. Schools were awarded gold, silver, or bronze medals based on their performance on state assessments and how well they prepare students for college.  Their full methodology can be found HERE.

Per Missouri, 8 out of the 10 "Best High Schools" ranked in the state are in the St. Louis area...

 
Other Missouri statistics...
 
In addition, Missouri is home to two schools awarded gold medals (Metro and Clayton in the St. Louis area)- only 2.8% of the schools in the nation are awarded this, representing the top 500 schools based on performance on state exit exams and highest college readiness. 13 Missouri High Schools were awarded silver medals (Marquette, Lafayette, Parkway West, Parkway South, Lindbergh, McKinley, Oakville, and Valley Park included in the St. Louis area), only given to 8.6% of eligible schools in the country and 126 were given bronze medals.
 
While locals often mock the popularity of the age old St. Louis question "Where did you go to high school?"... the question remains pertinent here due to our well-established and deeply-rooted public school system.  School District not only affects the quality of education here in St. Louis, but it is also directly correlated to property value in many areas of the Metro, as well.  While I do not  fully agree with all aspects of this list, as many of our local highly- reputable school districts sit lower in the rankings for one reason or another even with impeccable "College Readiness" scores and small class ratios...  the report is interesting and worth a share.
 
See all Missouri Rankings HERE.  See the FULL report and rankings in ALL states HERE.