Editor’s note: As we all face an inordinately difficult hiring period, with a painfully tight labor market, we thought we’d explore the fundamentals of Greater Washington’s talent pool. So, let’s start with the ABCs, so to speak, meaning with the K-12 set. This will be the latest in our breakdowns of top schools across the region in various categories for this year, so continue to stay tuned.
Our high school years are some of our most seminal, in every way possible. Many of us have decided by that point what we want to do with our careers, where we want to pursue a degree in that field, and what classes to take during this period to get there.
Our professional lives take a big leap in these four years. Especially in this market, where many of the public school systems rank among the best and our local high schools excel at training young minds and pointing them toward vocational paths that help change the trajectory of our future hiring.
High schools are often a determinant for where our topmost business leaders want to live. They are one of the heaviest contributors to property values, workforce development and business attraction.
So here they are, Greater Washington’s top-ranked public high schools, as compiled annually by U.S. News & World Report.
The publication assesses nearly 24,000 public schools nationwide, ultimately ranking 17,840 of them based on third-party data from the U.S. Department of Education’s annual Common Core of Data; statewide math, reading and science assessment test scores; and exam results from The College Board’s Advanced Placement program and International Baccalaureate program.
Together, those feed six metrics that U.S. News measures to rate school quality, assigning the most weight to college readiness and participation, including passing scores in AP or IB exams, as well as overall performance in state assessments. The other metrics include the College Curriculum Breadth Index, graduation rates and outcomes among underserved student populations. These were all given different weights, resulting in a final score out of 100 that describes each school’s percentile of performance. Those who scored in the 90th percentile meant that 90% of U.S. high schools ranked lower.
Suffice to say, in our region, the top 50 high schools all performed in or close to the 90th percentile, with one at a full 100. Greater Washington’s 50th top high school was ranked at No. 2,209 nationally, with four high schools and three different systems placing in the country’s top 105, showing the strength of this metro area’s public educational offerings. Most every school system is represented on this list, with at least one school in the mix, though some counties certainly dominate.
Go ahead, sate your curiosity, assuage your future workforce anxieties and click through the gallery above to learn the 50 best-ranked high schools across Greater Washington.
And stay tuned for more upcoming local public and private school rankings still yet to come.
More from this year’s rankings: See how the region’s elementary schools and middle schools fared in Niche.com’s 2022-2023 lists.
Interested in comparing with last year’s rankings? Here they all are:
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