Eleven days ago I published an article about US NEWS ranking Corbett School as the 2nd best high school in the State of Oregon and 74th in the United States. A copy of the article can be viewed by clicking here.
This weekend two other national organizations released their rankings for high schools from across the country. Each organization uses a different metric to rank schools. The good news is that no matter which metric is used Corbett Schools seem to catch the attention of folks who are interested in evaluating how high schools are doing.
The Washington Post
The Washington Post produces a yearly valuation of high schools called the “High School Challenge”. The author of this list, Jay Mathews, previously worked for Newsweek magazine so his Challenge Index has been in production for many years. The Challenge Index focuses on Advanced Placement participation. Corbett High School first appeared on the list back in 2006 when it was ranked 584th in the nation. Over the years Corbett School and Corbett Charter School have climbed in the ranks. This year Corbett Charter School is ranked 2nd in the Nation and Corbett School is ranked 4th! A copy of the list can be viewed by clicking here.
Newsweek
Last year, after Jay Mathews left Newsweek and took his Challenge Index list with him to the Washington Post, Newsweek created a new evaluative high school index called “America’s Best High Schools.” Their new index is a much broader look at how a school is performing and includes SAT test scores, graduation rates, number of AP tests offered per students, and other categories. Unfortunately, last year, Corbett School was not included in on their list…probably because we were a K-12 school. This year things are different.
Newsweek has ranked Corbett School 25th in the Nation based upon their new criteria. A copy of the complete list of “America’s Best High Schools” can be found by clicking here.
Newsweek also has begun creating a list of the top 25 “Transformative High Schools” in the nation. According to Newsweek “It is no secret that schools in poor neighborhoods often struggle. But some achieve a remarkable amount in relation to the poverty of their communities. Newsweek calls these Transformative Schools…”
Corbett School has been ranked 14th on Newsweek’s “Transformative High Schools” list a complete copy of the list of the top 25 transformative schools can be found by clicking here:
Good Work and Thank You
Parents, students, teachers, staff, and community members have reason to be proud. Not necessarily proud that Corbett schools are featured so prominently in three national publications, but proud of the all the work that goes into preparing students for life after high school. These accolades are fun but the real joy comes from knowing that the work we are all doing is impacting students positively. Within each of these metrics I find affirmation about the things we are doing well and at the same time I look for clues as to what we could be doing better.
My heartfelt thanks and congratulations go out to everyone who has worked so hard on behalf of our students to warrant such broad attention at the national level. For everyone involved I think we should take a minute to enjoy the satisfaction of being commended for having done good work for kids, before we transition right back into looking at ways to make what we are doing even better!
