Five HISD high schools land in top 100 of America’s Most Challenging High Schools.
A Houston Independent School District high school has been named as one of the top 10 high schools in the country, and four more have been listed among the top 100, according to the Washington Post.
The five schools are among 32 HISD high schools that made it onto the Washington Post’s 2015 list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools. Nearly three-quarters of the district’s high schools received the prestigious distinction, which was granted to just 11 percent of schools across the country this year.
Carnegie Vanguard High School took home top honors for HISD, ranking 9th out of the more than 2,300 high schools from across the country that made the list. Eastwood Academy ranked 63rd, Challenge Early College High School came in 79th, Energized for STEM placed 84th, and the High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice ranked 87th.
“We’re thrilled to have so many schools ranked among the very best in the country,” HISD Superintendent Terry Grier said. “We have dedicated teachers and students who are making great things happen at these schools, and this recognition serves as a true testament to that.”
Challenge index rankings are determined by taking the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given annually at each school and dividing that by the number of seniors who graduated in the spring.
HISD’s strong showing in the Washington Post rankings are the result of a 2009 decision by the HISD Board of Education to boost the number of AP course offerings in all schools, and to waive the AP exam fees for all students in those courses. Last year, HISD students passed 8,248 college-level Advanced Placement exams, an 80 percent increase from 2007. That is the equivalent of 25,000 college credits and a savings of $7.3 million in college tuition.
In addition to the national recognition, HISD had 16 schools rank among the top 100 Texas schools, including seven that were among the top 50 schools in the state and two that were among the top 20. Carnegie Vanguard High School placed 3rd out of the 169 Texas schools, while Eastwood Academy ranked 19th.
HISD National Rankings
9 – Carnegie Vanguard HS
63 – Eastwood Academy
79 – Challenge Early College HS
84 – Energized for STEM Academy
87 – High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice
116 – DeBakey HS for Health Professions
201 – Lamar HS
350 – High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
375 – Bellaire HS
447 – Houston Academy of International Studies
675 – Westbury HS
693 – Westside HS
712 – Sharpstown International School
743 – North Houston Early College HS
813 – Reagan HS
846 – Davis HS
951 – Chavez HS
959 – Sharpstown HS
1137 – Scarborough HS
1243 – Sam Houston MSTC
1314 – Madison HS
1373 – East Early College HS
1401 – Furr HS
1403 – Jones Futures Academy
1,595 – Washington HS
1,606 – Waltrip HS
1,978 – Milby HS
2,121 – Stephen F. Austin HS
2,146 – Barbara Jordan HS for Careers
2,157 – Mount Carmel Academy
2,169 – Lee HS
2,222 – Worthing HS
For a complete list of schools, go online to: http://apps.washingtonpost.com/local/highschoolchallenge/schools/2015/list/national/