Benicia High Named A Top U.S. High School: U.S. News

BENICIA, CA — Benicia High School has been named among the best high schools in the United States for 2021, according to a new ranking by U.S. News and World Report.

This year’s list ranks more than 17,800 public high schools throughout the country and 2,598 public high schools in California.

Among those schools, Benicia High was ranked No. 2,309 in the nation, No. 341 in the state and No. 3 in the Vallejo Metro Area. Benicia High received 87.07 overall on its scorecard from U.S. News: 55 percent of students have taken at least one Advanced Placement exam, 43 percent have passed at least one AP exam, the school has a 50 percent math proficiency, a 66 percent reading proficiency, and a 98 percent graduation rate.

The purpose of the rankings is to provide insight into academic performance among underserved groups, showing how well schools are supporting these students, Anita Narayan, managing editor of education at U.S. News, said in a news release.

Families can also use the rankings to see how schools compare at the national, state and local level on factors such as graduation rates and college readiness, Narayan said.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, was ranked No. 1 in the nation, as well as among magnet schools.

Here are the top 10 schools in this year’s national Best High Schools ranking:

1. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology - Alexandria, Virginia
2. Academic Magnet High School - North Charleston, South Carolina
3. The Davidson Academy of Nevada - Reno, Nevada
4. Payton College Preparatory High School - Chicago, Illinois
5. School for Advanced Studies - Miami, Florida
6. Sumner Academy of Arts and Science - Kansas City, Kansas
7. Merrol Hyde Magnet School - Hendersonville, Tennessee
8. BASIS Chandler - Chandler, Arizona
9. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology - Lawrenceville, Georgia
10. Signature School - Evansville, Indiana

The methodology used for this year’s ranking focused on six factors: college readiness, reading and math proficiency, reading and math performance, underserved student performance, college curriculum breadth and graduation rates.

The data used in this edition is from the 2018-2019 academic school year and, therefore, was not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more about the Best High Schools methodology.

In addition to the national rankings, U.S. News also published rankings at the state, metro area and school district levels. Only metro areas and school districts with three or more high schools were included in these subrankings.

Here are the top 10 high schools in California on this year's list:

1. Oxford Academy - Anaheim
2. Whitney High School - Cerritos
3. California Academy of Mathematics and Science - Carson
4. Riverside Stem Academy - Riverside
5. Mission San Jose High School - Fremont
6. Preuss School UCSD- La Jolla
7. Lowell High School - San Francisco
8. Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy - Wilmington
9. University High School - Fresno
10. Pacific Collegiate - Santa Cruz

Here is how U.S. News ranked Vallejo Metro Area high schools:

1. Public Safety Academy
2. Mare Island Technology Academy (MIT)
3. Benicia High
4. Vacaville High
5. Angelo Rodriguez High
6. Vanden High
7. Dixon High
8. Elise P. Buckingham Charter Magnet High
9. Will C. Wood High
10. Fairfield High
11. Armijo High
12. Rio Vista High
13. Jesse M. Bethel High
14. (Tie: Ernest Kimme Charter Academy for Independent Learning, Sem Yeto Continuation and Vallejo High)

BASIS Chandler in Arizona is at the top of the list for charter schools, and High Technology High School in Lincroft, New Jersey, is the No. 1 STEM school.