(KRON) — U.S. News published its list of best public high schools in California this week, and several Bay Area schools cracked the top 10.
The front half of the list was dominated by Southern California. Riverside Stem Academy (Riverside), Whitney High School (Cerritos) and Science Academy Stem Magnet (North Hollywood) made up the list’s top three and were all ranked in the top 15 nationally. All three have a graduation rate of 99% or better.
Further down the top 10, Bay Area schools began to appear. San Francisco’s Lowell High School came in at No. 7, San Jose’s Lynbrook High School ranked No. 9 and Dr. T.J. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy in Gilroy was No. 10.
Take a look at the full list below:
- Riverside Stem Academy (Riverside)
- Whitney High School (Cerritos)
- Science Academy Stem Magnet (North Hollywood)
- Oxford Academy (Cypress)
- California Academy of Mathematics and Science (Carson)
- Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy (Wilmington)
- Lowell High School (San Francisco)
- Pacific Collegiate Charter (Santa Cruz)
- Lynbrook High School (San Jose)
- Dr. T.J. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy (Gilroy)
Lowell, Lynbrook and Owens ranked No. 74, 82, and 86 nationally, respectively. Fremont’s Mission San Jose High School was the No. 11 school in California and No. 93 nationally.
Read U.S. News’ blurb on each Bay Area school in the top 10 below:
Lowell: “Lowell High School offers a rigorous curriculum focused on honors-level and Advanced Placement courses, including chemistry, calculus and economics. Lowell High School also offers a variety of foreign languages, and its athletic teams claim more city championships than any other public high school in San Francisco. Distinguished Lowell alumni include three Nobel Prize winners and famed gorilla researcher Dian Fossey.”
Lynbrook: “Students have the opportunity to take Advanced Placement® coursework and exams. The AP® participation rate at Lynbrook High School is 84%. The total minority enrollment is 93%, and 4% of students are economically disadvantaged.”
Owens: “Students have the opportunity to take Advanced Placement® coursework and exams. The AP® participation rate at Dr. T.J. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy is 100%. The total minority enrollment is 87%, and 38% of students are economically disadvantaged.”
Methodology
The rankings included nearly 17,660 public high schools across the United States. U.S. News used six different factors to rank the schools, all weighted differently:
- College readiness (30%)
- College curriculum breadth (10%)
- State assessment proficiency (20%)
- State assessment performance (20%)
- Underserved student performance (10%)
- Graduation rate (10%)
For more on methodology, click HERE.
