The Best High School in Every U.S. State

By: Katelyn Fahrenbruck Weston

When people make the decision to move, there are many factors to consider. Housing costs, square footage, and proximity to amenities like grocery stores can play a big part in deciding where to live. Another factor that many people take into consideration is the school district where the home is located. A great school district is a big draw, as many parents and parents-to-be want their children to receive the best education possible. High school rankings play a big part in this.

The U.S. Career Institute team looked at reading and math proficiency scores of public schools around the country to determine the best high school in every U.S. state. See which high school in your state came out on top!

Click on the image to view full size

How Are the Best High Schools in Every State Rated?

The data for the graphic, which comes from PublicSchoolReview.com, compares reading and math proficiency scores for public high schools across the United States to find America’s best high schools. The best high school in California, which is the most populous state in the country, is Science Academy STEM Magnet in North Hollywood. The school has a math proficiency score of more than 99% and a reading proficiency of 98%. This college preparatory school focuses on science, technology, engineering, and math education, commonly abbreviated as STEM. The high proficiency scores make it one of the best public schools in California. The second most populous state in the U.S. is Texas. The two highest-rated high schools in that state are DeBakey High School for Health Professionals in Houston and Health Careers High School in San Antonio. Both schools have a math proficiency of more than 95% and a reading proficiency of more than 99%. Florida is the third most populous state in the country, and the best high school in that state according to reading and math proficiency is Pine View School in Osprey. Both the reading and math proficiency at the school are more than 99%. The fourth most populous state is New York. New York is unique because there are 30 high schools that have reading and math proficiencies above 99%. These range from the Bronx High School of Science in the Bronx to Pittsford Sutherland High School in Pittsford. Pennsylvania, the fifth most populous state in the U.S., has two high schools tied at the top with more than 99% proficiency in both math and reading: Central High School in Philadelphia and Downingtown STEM Academy in Downingtown. An important thing to note is that individual states determine criteria for “proficiency” according to their own tests, and proficiency percentages should not necessarily be compared across states due to the differing tests and criteria applied between each state.
Looking to get your high school diploma online? There are many options available!

The Top High Schools in Every State

August 2022

The following are the best public high schools in every U.S. state.

State	School	City	Grade Levels	Math Proficiency	Reading Proficiency
Alabama	Mountain Brook High School	Birmingham	10-12	96%	95%
Alabama	Loveless Academic Magnet Program High School	Montgomery	9-12	≥95%	≥95%
Alaska	Skagway School	Skagway	PK-12	75-79%	85-89%
Arizona	University High School	Tucson	8-12	≥95%	≥99%
Arkansas	Haas Hall Academy Bentonville	Bentonville	7-12	93%	91%
Arkansas	Haas Hall Academy	Farmington	7-12	91%	93%
California	Science Academy STEM Magnet	North Hollywood	6-11	≥99%	98%
California	Whitney High School	Cerritos	7-12	98%	≥99%
Colorado	The Vanguard School	Colorado Springs	9-12	80-89%	≥90%
Connecticut	Darien High School	Darien	9-12	86%	92%
Delaware	Charter School of Wilmington	Wilmington	9-12	91%	98%
Florida	Pine View School	Osprey	2-12	≥99%	≥99%
Georgia	Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology	Lawrenceville	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Hawaii	Myron B. Thompson Academy	Honolulu	K-12	56%	80%
Idaho	Renaissance High School	Meridian	9-12	90-94%	≥95%
Illinois	Northside College Preparatory High School	Chicago	9-12	94%	97%
Indiana	Signature School Inc.	Evansville	9-12	80-84%	≥95%
Iowa	Decorah High School	Decorah	9-12	90-94%	90-94%
Kansas	Pawnee Heights	Rozel	PK-12	60-64%	55-59%
Kentucky	Dupont Manual High School	Louisville	9-12	85%	88%
Louisiana	Baton Rouge Magnet High School	Baton Rouge	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Maine	Maine School of Science and Mathematics	Limestone	9-12	≥90%	≥90%
Maryland	Thomas S. Wootton High School	Rockville	9-12	87%	91%
Massachusetts	Lexington High School	Lexington	9-12	96%	92%
Michigan	International Academy	Bloomfield Hills	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Minnesota	St. Croix Preparatory Academy Upper School	Stillwater	9-12	90-94%	90-94%
Mississippi	West Union Attendance Center	Myrtle	K-12	77%	66%
Missouri	Clayton High School	Saint Louis	9-12	78%	80%
Montana	Fairfield High School	Fairfield	9-12	60-79%	≥80%
Nebraska	Elkhorn South High School	Omaha	9-12	85%	85%
Nevada	The Davidson Academy of Nevada	Reno	6-12	≥95%	≥95%
New Hampshire	Academy for Science and Design	Nashua	9-12	≥90%	≥90%
New Hampshire	Hanover High School	Hanover	9-12	85-89%	≥95%
New Jersey	Bergen County Academies	Hackensack	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New Mexico	Albuquerque Institute of Math and Science	Albuquerque	6-12	74%	90%
New York	Bethlehem Central Senior High School	Delmar	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Brighton High School	Rochester	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Bronx High School of Science	Bronx	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Brooklyn Technical High School	Brooklyn	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Byram Hills High School	Armonk	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	East Meadow High School	East Meadow	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Fairport Senior High School	Fairport	10-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School	Manhattan	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Garden City High School	Garden City	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Great Neck South High School	Great Neck	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Harborfields High School	Green Lawn	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Herricks High School	New Hyde Park	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Horace Greeley High School	Chappaqua	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Jericho Senior High School	Jericho	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	John F. Kennedy High School	Bellmore	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Lancaster High School	Lancaster	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Manhasset Secondary School	Manhasset	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Maspeth High School	Elmhurst	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	North Shore Senior High School	Glen Head	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Pittsford Sutherland High School	Pittsford	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Pittsford Mendon High School	Pittsford	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School	Plainview	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Scarsdale Senior High School	Scarsdale	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Shaker High School	Latham	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Staten Island Technical High School	Staten Island	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Stuyvesant High School	Manhattan	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Townsend Harris High School	Flushing	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Valley Stream Central High School	Valley Stream	10-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	West Islip Senior High School	West Islip	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
New York	Williamsville East High School	East Amherst	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
North Carolina	Nesbitt Discovery Academy	Asheville	9-12	≥95%	≥95%
North Dakota	Hebron High School	Hebron	7-12	60-79%	60-79%
Ohio	Columbus Preparatory Academy	Columbus	K-12	97%	98%
Oklahoma	Dove Science Academy High School	Oklahoma City	9-12	70-74%	60-64%
Oregon	South Eugene High School	Eugene	9-12	75%	92%
Pennsylvania	Central High School	Philadelphia	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Pennsylvania	Downingtown STEM Academy	Downingtown	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Rhode Island	Barrington High School	Barrington	9-12	77%	89%
South Carolina	Greer Middle College Charter High School	Taylors	9-12	≥95%	≥95%
South Dakota	Hamlin High School	Hayti	9-12	70-79%	≥90%
Tennessee	Merrol Hyde Magnet School	Hendersonville	K-12	98%	93%
Texas	DeBakey High School for Health Professions	Houston	9-12	≥95%	≥99%
Texas	Health Careers High School	San Antonio	9-12	≥95%	≥99%
Utah	Northern Utah Academy of Math, Engineering, and Science	Layton	10-12	84%	86%
Vermont	Colchester High School	Colchester	9-12	55-59%	75-79%
Virginia	Thomas Jefferson High School	Alexandria	9-12	≥99%	≥99%
Washington	International Community School	Kirkland	6-12	96%	97%
West Virginia	George Washington High School	Charleston	9-12	48%	79%
Wisconsin	Kohler High School	Kohler	9-12	70-74%	80-84%
Wyoming	Poder Academy Secondary School	Cheyenne	6-12	75-79%	80-84%

Want to display this infographic on your website?
You can copy the below code and paste it into your website.

                    <a href="https://www.uscareerinstitute.edu/blog/best-high-school-in-every-state">
                    <img src="https://www.uscareerinstitute.edu/images/best-high-schools-in-every-state.png" alt="The Best High School in Every U.S. State - USCareerInstitute.edu - Infographic" title="The Best High School in Every U.S. State - USCareerInstitute.edu - Infographic"></a><br><a href="https://www.USCareerInstitute.edu" alt="Online Career Training School USCareerInstitute.edu" title="USCareerInstitute.edu">By USCareerInstitute.edu</a>