Every year, U.S. News and World Report puts out a ranking of high schools. The list includes more than 25,000 public high schools, magnet, and charter schools across the nation and the District of Columbia. The organization released this year’s rankings in August, and numerous schools throughout the DMV earned high-ranking spots. Here are the top three in the District, NoVa, and Maryland.
District of Columbia
Within D.C. itself, two high schools broke into the nation’s top 200.
- School Without Walls High School
As part of the District of Columbia Public Schools system, this school has 595 grade 9-12 students with a 95 percent graduation rate.
#1 in District of Columbia
#2 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#114 in national rankings
2. Benjamin Banneker Academy High School
As part of the District of Columbia Public Schools system, this school has 537 grade 9-12 students and a more than 99 percent graduation rate.
#2 in District of Columbia
#4 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#131 in national rankings
3. BASIS D.C.
This charter school operates as the sole school in the BASIS D.C. Public Schools system. It has 214 students with 100 percent AP course participation and has an over 95 percent graduation rate.
#3 in District of Columbia
#9 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#61 in Charter Schools
#250 in national rankings
Northern Virginia
Numerous NoVa high schools ranked highly throughout the region and state, with two of them also earning rankings within the nation’s top 200.
- Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
This magnet school operates within the Fairfax County Public Schools system using a STEM-focused curriculum. It has 1,902 grade 9-12 students with 100 percent of students taking at least one AP course and has a 100 percent graduation rate.
#1 in Virginia high schools
#1 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#2 in Fairfax County Public Schools high schools
#5 in national rankings
2. McLean High School
This traditional public school operates within the Fairfax County Public Schools system. It has 2,365 grade 9-12 students and has a 100 percent graduation rate.
#4 in Virginia high schools
#6 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#2 in Fairfax County Public Schools high schools
#182 in national rankings
3. Langley High School
This traditional public school operates within the Fairfax County Public Schools system. It has 2,049 grade 9-12 students and has a 100% graduation rate.
#5 in Virginia high schools
#7 in Washington, D.C. Metro area high schools
#3 in Fairfax County Public Schools high schools
#213 in national rankings
Maryland
Numerous Maryland high schools within the D.C. metro ranked highly throughout the region and state, with two of them also earning rankings within the nation’s top 200.
- Poolesville High School
This public magnet school operates within the Montgomery County Public Schools system. It has 1,272 grade 9-12 students and a more than 95 percent graduation rate.
#1 in Maryland high schools
#3 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#1 in Montgomery County Public Schools high schools
#39 among Magnet schools
#45 in STEM high schools
#140 in national rankings
2) Walt Whitman High School
Operating as part of the Montgomery County Public Schools system, this school has 2,029 9-12 students and an over 95 percent graduation rate.
#3 in Maryland high schools
#5 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#2 in Montgomery County Public Schools high schools
#147 in national rankings
3) Thomas S. Wootton High School
This traditional public school operates within the Montgomery County Public Schools system. It has 1,943 grade 9-12 students and a more than 95 percent graduation rate.
#4 in Maryland high schools
#8 in Washington, D.C., metro-area high schools
#3 in Montgomery County Public Schools high schools
#235 in national rankings
The full list, including details on each school, can be found here.
