Local high schools ranked best in country

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.

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