Saint Helena High Named A Top U.S. High School: U.S. News

NAPA VALLEY, CA — Saint Helena High School in Saint Helena 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, Saint Helena High was ranked No. 1,293 in the nation and No. 190 in the state of California. St. Helena High received 92.76 overall on its scorecard from U.S. News: 57 percent of students have taken at least one Advanced Placement exam, 50 percent have passed at least one AP exam, the school has a 42 percent math proficiency, an 87 percent reading proficiency, and a 90 percent graduation rate.

Elsewhere in the Napa Valley, Napa High School, which has a graduation rate of 92 percent, was ranked No. 4,606 in the nation and No. 664 in California, while Vintage High School, with a graduation rate of 93 percent, was ranked No. 5,373 in the nation and No. 765 in the state.

American Canyon High School has a graduation rate of 96 percent and was ranked No. 5,725 in the nation and No. 812 in the state, while Calistoga Junior-Senior High School, which also has a graduation rate of 96 percent, was ranked No. 6,988 in the nation and No. 935 in the state.

Justin-Siena High School in Napa is private so it was not included by U.S. News, which ranks public schools using information gleaned from the government.

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

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.