Where Do Salem Schools Rank Among MA High Schools?: U.S. News

SALEM, MA — Salem Academy Charter School has been named among the best 100 public high schools in the state, while Salem High ranked near the middle of the state's 347 schools, according to a new ranking by U.S. News and World Report.

This year's list ranks some 17,800 of the more than 21,000 public high schools throughout the country.

Among those schools, Salem Academy Charter School was ranked 2,280th nationally, and 96th in the state.

Salem High was ranked 6,587th nationally, and 213th in the state.

Here are how other neighboring schools fared:

• Beverly — 200th statewide
• Danvers — 195th statewide
• Peabody — 249th statewide
• Marblehead— 57th statewide
• Swampscott — 90th statewide
• Essex Tech — 239th statewide

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

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 in a news release.

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

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.