Where are Mississippi’s best high schools? Many are on the Coast, rankings show
Several Coast high schools rank among the best in Mississippi, with eight landing in the top 30, according to a report.
U.S. News & World Report published its annual list of the best high schools in the nation, including breakdowns by state. Biloxi High school was named the second-best in Mississippi, earning high marks for college readiness among students, graduation rates and other key factors.
It ranked fifth in preparing students for college and seventh for math and reading performance, according to the report. The graduation rate is 85%.
Biloxi High wasn’t the only Coast school to land high on the list. Mississippi’s top-performing schools include:
- Pass Christian High School at No. 3
- Ocean Springs High School at No. 7
- West Harrison High School at No. 12
- Gulfport High School at No. 16
- Long Beach High School at No. 17
- D’Iberville High School at No. 18
- Bay High School at No. 22
The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science snagged the No. 1 spot in the state, and was ranked 307th on the national list. In Mississippi, the statewide rankings haven’t changed much from the year before.
US. News and Word Reports defines top-performing schools as “those whose students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math and reading state assessments, earned qualifying scores in an array of college-level exams, and graduated in high proportions,” according to methodology for the 2021 rankings.
For its list, the national magazine reviewed nearly 24,000 public high schools across the U.S. and scored them against six key indicators, including math and reading proficiency, college curriculum breadth, underserved student performance and graduation rates.
So where’s the nation’s best high school?
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, was 2021’s best U.S. high school, according to the report.
This story was originally published April 27, 2021 at 10:48 AM.