Top Performing Public High Schools in Austin

Based on an article released by the Austin Business Journal last April 24, 2017, the top 10 high schools in the Austin area on the U.S. News list and their state/national ranking are:

1. Liberal Arts and Science Academy— Austin ISD (No. 5 statewide/No. 27 nationally)
2. KIPP Austin Collegiate— KIPP Austin Public Schools Inc. (No. 23/No. 116)
3. Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders— Austin ISD (No. 24/No. 117)
4. Westlake High School— Eanes ISD (No. 42/No. 245)
5. Vandegrift High School— Leander ISD (No. 47/No. 280)
6. Westwood High School— Round Rock ISD (No. 48/No. 431)
7. Chaparral Star Academy (No. 60/No. 456)
8. Harmony Science Academy North Austin, Pflugerville (No. 65/No. 492)
9. Harmony School of Excellence(No. 74/No. 568)
10. NYOS Charter School(No. 81/No. 679)

Top-ranking Liberal Arts and Science Academy ranked 5th in Texas and 27th nationally. Using factors such as overall student performance on high school proficiency tests, test performance of disadvantaged students, graduation rate, and Advanced Placement test data, the U.S. News & World Report came up with its final rankings and released the list Monday night.

The relevance of quality education on real estate

While the connection between real estate and quality of education cannot easily be seen on the surface, the performance of a school in a community actually has a major impact on the area's real estate trends. Retail development in residential areas follows trends in communities where schools nearby are producing top-performing students-- a strong selling point for families who want their children to have the best education possible. 

Business leaders in Austin understand that the key ingredient to the region's sustained economic development is the supply of a skilled future workforce-- something that can only be created and maintained by offering the best quality of education possible.

National Rankings

BASIS School Inc., a charter school network, dominated the national rankings with three of its campuses in Arizona named as the nation's best-performing high schools. This is the first time a BASIS school landed the top spot on the annual list, although previous years have shown good performances as well.

Maryland schools performed best by their measures (5.9% of Maryland public schools achieved "Gold Medal" and 21.6% achieved "Silver Medal" statuses, respectively). Massachusetts had the highest percentage of "Gold Medal" schools (6.2% of its high schools), but due to its few "Silver Medal" high schools, it managed to gain only the fifth spot. The other states that made it to the Top 5 list are Florida, California, and Connecticut.

The states with the lowest rankings (due to having less than 4% of their respective schools achieving Gold Medal or Silver Medal status) are Nebraska, Mississippi, Wyoming, Iowa, New Mexico, and South Dakota.

Curious to know more about this year's rankings? You can access the post where this news first appeared by clicking here.