ALABAMA (WHNT) — The United States News & World Report released its latest rankings of the best high schools in each state. Where do some North Alabama schools rank among the top 50?
In Alabama, 386 high schools were ranked.
Before we get into the top 50 list, how does U.S. News & World calculate the best high school rankings? There are six ranking indicators that U.S. News & World Report uses to calculate the best high schools. The website shows that the six categories are weighted in percentages:
- College Readiness – 30%
- The College Readiness Index, or CRI, is measured by the proportion of a school’s 12th graders who took and earned a qualifying score on Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) exams.
- Two elements in this category are the participation rate and a quality-adjusted participation rate.
- College Curriculum Breadth – 10%
- The College Curriculum Breadth Index, or CCBI, is calculated among a school’s 2022-2023 12th graders from the percentage who took, and the percentage who earned qualifying scores on, multiple AP or IB exams. Students who took exams and earned qualifying scores in four AP or IB content areas earned full credit. Those who earned qualifying scores in two or three AP or IB content areas were given partial credit of 50% and 75%, respectively.
- State Assessment Proficiency – 20%
- Each state issues standardized tests measuring student proficiency in subjects related to mathematics, reading and science. States often look closely at student performance on these tests to determine whether learning in core subjects is achieved and to review how well schools are educating students. At least passing some of these assessments may be a requirement for students to graduate.
- State Assessment Performance – 20%
- This ranking indicator is also derived from math, reading and science state assessments. But in this case, the total assessment scores are compared with what U.S. News predicted for a school with its demographic characteristics in its state.
- Underserved Student Performance – 10%
- This is a measure assessing learning outcomes only among Black, Hispanic and low-income students. This evaluates how well this underserved subgroup scored on state assessments compared with the average for non-underserved students among schools in the same state. Schools performing above the 50th percentile nationally in this comparison received the highest score, while other schools’ scores decreased the greater the distance between their underserved students and their state’s median for non-underserved students.
- Graduation Rate – 10%
- Among students who entered ninth grade in the 2019-2020 academic year, this measure is the proportion who graduated four years later, by 2023. Graduation rates are an important indicator of how well a school is serving its students.
Now, let’s get into the ranked high schools for the state of Alabama and see where some North Alabama schools fall in that Top 50.
#3 – New Century Tech Demo High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 97.88/100.
The AP participation rate at New Century Tech Demo High School is 74%. The total minority enrollment is 55%, and 49% of students are economically disadvantaged, the report says.
#8 – James Clemens High School
The school was given an overall score of 94.03/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The AP participation rate at James Clemens High School is 58%. The total minority enrollment is 44%, and 25% of students are economically disadvantaged, according to the report.
#10 – Bob Jones High School
The school received an overall score of 92.43/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report said the AP participation rate at Bob Jones High School is 46%. The total minority enrollment is 46%, and 28% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#11 – Arab High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 90.98/100.
AP participation rate at Arab High School is 57%. The total minority enrollment is 7%, and 44% of students are economically disadvantaged, according to the report.
#14 – Huntsville High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 90.37/100.
AP participation rate at Huntsville High School is 65%. The total minority enrollment is 39%, and 30% of students are economically disadvantaged, the report said.
#17 – Hartselle High School
The school was given an overall score of 89.37/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report from U.S. News & World said the AP participation rate at Hartselle High School is 52%. The total minority enrollment is 12%, and 30% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#21 – Plainview High School
The school was given an overall score of 87.45/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report said the AP participation rate at Plainview School is 49%. The total minority enrollment is 30%, and 62% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#23 – Cullman High School
The school was given an overall score of 87.27/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report said the AP participation rate at Cullman High School is 48%. The total minority enrollment is 14%, and 32% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#33 – Decatur High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 82.48/100.
The report said the AP participation at Decatur High School is 42%. The total minority enrollment is 68%, and 72% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#35 – Madison County High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 81.94/100.
The AP participation rate at Madison County High School is 71%. The total minority enrollment is 33%, and 38% of students are economically disadvantaged, the report said.
#38 – Hazel Green High School
The school was given an overall score of 81.11/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The AP participation rate at Hazel Green High School is 45%. The total minority enrollment is 42%, and 44% of students are economically disadvantaged, the report said.
#39 – Priceville High School
The school was given a U.S. News & World Report overall score of 80.2/100.
The report said the AP participation rate at Priceville High School is 53%. The total minority enrollment is 14%, and 36% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#41 – Virgil Grissom High School
The school was given an overall score of 79.39/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report said the AP participation rate at Virgil Grissom High School is 46%. The total minority enrollment is 45%, and 43% of students are economically disadvantaged.
#45 – Muscle Shoals High School
The school was given an overall score of 78.69/100 from U.S. News & World Report.
The report said the AP participation rate at Muscle Shoals High School is 43%. The total minority enrollment is 34%, and 40% of students are economically disadvantaged.
For the rest of the rankings, you can view the full list on the U.S. News and World Report website here.
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