Council Rock High Schools Rank Among The Best In PA

NEWTOWN, PA ? The Council Rock School District's two high schools are again ranked among the best in the state in the latest ranking of public high schools released by Niche on Monday.

Council Rock High School North ranks 33rd in the state in the new Niche ranking. Its sister school - Council Rock South - is ranked 45th.

The 2026 Best Public High Schools ranking is based on rigorous analysis of key statistics and millions of reviews from students and parents using data from the U.S. Department of Education. Ranking factors include state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, teacher quality, and high school ratings. SAT/ACT scores have been removed from this year's rankings to reflect a general de-emphasis on test scores in the college admissions process.

In this year's rankings, Council Rock North dropped a few notches, moving from 31st Best in 2025 to 33rd Best in the 2026 rankings. According to state test scores, 87 percent of students are at least proficient in math and 80 percent in reading.

Meanwhile, Council Rock South improved its position, moving up from a 48th ranking in 2025 to 45th in 2026. According to state test scores, 81 percent of students are at least proficient in math and 80 percent in reading.

Council Rock North High School in Newtown. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

While there were fluctuations in the rankings, the schools remain solidly among the best 50 schools in Pennsylvania. Both schools earned an A rating.

Niche said its rankings were created to provide families with valuable information ? both quantitative and qualitative ? on schools in their area or in a neighborhood they?re not familiar with yet. As in previous years, the Best Schools rankings include categories for boarding schools and private schools, including religious schools, among many others.

Council Rock South High School in Holland. (Jeff Werner/Patch)