Westport's Staples High School Is CT's Best Public High School: Niche

WESTPORT, CT — Staples High School in Westport is ranked as the top public high school in Connecticut, according to the latest annual list from Niche.com of the state's best public high schools.

Staples' overall Niche grade is an A+. It received A+'s for Academics, Teachers, College Prep and Clubs & Activities. The school also received a B+ for Administration, and a C+ for diversity.

Nationally, Staples is ranked 144th. After Staples, Connecticut's second and third-best public high schools are New Canaan High School and Darien High School, respectively. Seven of the top 10 public high schools in the state are in Fairfield County, according to the report.

Patch reached out to Westport Schools Superintendent Thomas Scarice for comment, but did not immediately receive a reply.

Westport's Pierrepont School (12th) and Greens Farms Academy (16th) are also among Connecticut's top private high schools, according to a separate Niche report.

Niche said its rankings differ from others that rely almost exclusively on test scores and academic performance in that it also includes input from students, alumni and parents. Additionally, its rankings also include quantitative data from sources such as the U.S. Department of Education to evaluate teachers, resources and facilities.

The 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, according to Niche.

As in previous years, the Best Schools rankings include categories for boarding, charter and magnet schools as well as schools for STEM and the arts among many others.