WASHINGTON – The Washington area boasts many of the top 500 high schools ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.
The publication ranks the best public, charter and magnet high schools in the country. More than 21,000 public high schools were assessed in 49 states and the District of Columbia.
The top 500 are designated Gold Medal Schools for their well-rounded college preparation.
The following is a sampling of area schools, their rankings by U.S. News and World Report, their student-to-teacher ratios and college readiness index values.
The college readiness ranking is based on the percentage of seniors who tested and passed Advanced Placement exams.
See the full rankings here.
Best local high schools |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | School | City | Student to Teacher Ratio | College Readiness |
| 4 | Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology | Alexandria, Va. | 17:1 | 100 |
| 52 | Winston Churchill High School | Potomac, Md. | 19:1 | 85.6 |
| 59 | Walt Whitman High School | Bethesda, Md. | 17:1 | 84.2 |
| 84 | Langley High School | McLean, Va. | 20:1 | 79.2 |
| 99 | Poolesville High School | Poolesville, Md. | 19:1 | 75.6 |
| 101 | James Madison High School | Vienna, Va. | 20:1 | 75.3 |
| 105 | Thomas Wootton High School | Rockville, Md. | 19:1 | 74.6 |
| 106 | Richard Montgomery High School | Rockville, Md. | 18:1 | 74.6 |
| 107 | McLean High School | McLean, Va. | 20:1 | 74.4 |
| 116 | W.T. Woodson High School | Fairfax, Va. | 20:1 | 72 |
| 118 | Oakton High School | Vienna, Va. | 20:1 | 71.1 |
| 128 | Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School | Bethesda, Md. | 19:1 | 69.7 |
| 165 | River Hill High School | Clarksville, Md. | 14:1 | 64.2 |
| 197 | Lake Braddock Secondary School | Burke, Va. | 20:1 | 60.7 |
| 201 | Briar Woods High | Ashburn, Va. | 19:1 | 60.6 |
| 206 | Loudoun Valley High | Purcellville, Va. | 17:1 | 60.2 |
| 207 | West Springfield High School | Springfield, Va.. | 20:1 | 60.0 |
| 212 | Fairfax High School | Fairfax, Va. | 21:1 | 59.5 |
| 213 | Severna Park High School | Severna Park, Md. | 19:1 | 59.4 |
| 242 | George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology | Towson, Md. | 13:1 | 57.7 |
| 247 | Montgomery Blair High School | Silver Spring, Md. | 18:1 | 57.5 |
| 256 | Broadneck High School | Annapolis, Md. | 19:1 | 57 |
| 266 | School Without Walls High School | Washington, D.C. | 12:1 | 56.2 |
| 288 | James Robinson Secondary School | Fairfax, Va. | 19:1 | 55.1 |
| 326 | Chantilly High School | Chantilly, Va. | 19:1 | 53.1 |
| 380 | George C. Marshall High School | Falls Church, Va. | 18:1 | 50.7 |
| 435 | Loudoun County High | Leesburg, Va. | 18:1 | 48.2 |
| 452 | South County Secondary | Lorton, Va. | 20:1 | 47.6 |
| 461 | Benjamin Banneker Academic High School | Washington, D.C. | 14:1 | 47.2 |
| 465 | Heritage High | Leesburg, Va. | 18:1 | 47.1 |
This story has been modified and updated.
Dick Uliano and Megan Cloherty contributed to this report. Follow @WTOP on Twitter.
