Yesterday, U.S. News & World Report released their annual “Best High Schools” rankings. Here at the OEP, we want to make sure that you understand what the “Best” title is based on, and how this compares with what Arkansas has determined is “Best” for Arkansas students
The U.S. News “Best High School” ratings are generally based on standardized test scores. Decades of research shows that students from more advantaged backgrounds are more likely to score well on these types of assessments. It is not surprising then, that only one of the ten “Best” high schools serves a population of students that even approaches the statewide average of 66% economically disadvantaged. Shout out to Rogers New Tech High who ranks in the top 10 while 50% of their students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds!
Below are the 2023 top 10 public high schools in Arkansas according to U.S. News. For context, we noted the 2022-23 percentage of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch provided in MySchoolInfo, which is used as an indicator of student poverty rates.
- Haas Hall Academy (5% FRL)
- Haas Hall Academy at the Lane (17% FRL)
- Haas Hall Academy at the Jones Center (18% FRL)
- Founders Classical Academies of Arkansas High School Rogers (formerly Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy High) (9% FRL)
- Bentonville High School (15% FRL)
- Rogers New Tech (50% FRL)
- Greenbrier High (33% FRL)
- Fayetteville High (27% FRL)
- Valley Springs High (37% FRL)
- Bentonville West High School (23% FRL)
Arkansas uses letter grades to communicate school quality. Each year, the state combines high school achievement on state assessments, learning growth, graduation rates, and other measures of school quality (attendance, GPA, advanced coursework, public service, etc.) to assign high schools an overall score. These scores are the basis for an A-F letter grade. The new grade for 2023 will be released soon, but you can find the 2022 grades for all schools here!
Nineteen Arkansas high schools were rated “A” in 2022, but only six of them are in the top ten of the U.S. News “Best” list. Of the four remaining “Best” schools, three received a “B” and one received a “C”.
Differences in who is the “Best” is the result of what is being valued and measured. Here at OEP, annual growth in student learning is what we give awards for, and today we are recognizing districts for Best Freshman Success. Post-secondary outcomes like college-going rates, industry certifications earned, completion of a coherent Career and Technical Education sequence, and employment after high school graduation are other indicators of a high school that is doing a great job preparing students for their future. Let’s make sure that we are celebrating schools that are the “Best” for Arkansas students.