ICYMI: Tampa Bay's Top Public High Schools Ranked

U.S. News & World Report has crunched the numbers to create its annual rankings of the “Best High Schools” in the country. While only one school in the Tampa Bay region made the national Top 10 list, a number of local schools did do well in statewide rankings.

To arrive at its rankings, U.S. News looked at data related to more than 21,000 public high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Schools were ranked based on such factors as performance on state assessments, college readiness, student-to-teacher ratios and graduation rates, among other factors. The full methodology behind the rankings is explained on the U.S. News website.

See Also: Florida’s Top 100 Public High Schools Ranked

The School for the Talented and Gifted in Dallas, Texas, ranked No. 1 on the national list, followed by BASIS Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Ariz. Florida’s entry in the Top 10 is Sarasota County’s own Pine View School at No. 7. Located in Osprey, Pine View School scored an impressive 100 in the college readiness category and boasts a student-to-teacher ratio of 17:1. Not surprisingly, Pine View was also named the No. 1 school in the entire state of Florida.

“The students and teachers at Pine View consistently go the extra degree in everything they do, and their hard work and dedication is borne out in results like these national rankings,” Pine View Principal Stephen Covert told Patch. “In addition to continuing Pine View’s tradition of academic excellence, our students and teachers are committed to social responsibility and making a difference in our community and the world.”

That focus, Covert said, is “really far more important than test scores and assessments; the teaching and inspiring of students to be critical thinkers and collaborators, and preparing them to be leaders in the world.”

Here are the schools in the Tampa Bay area that made U.S. News’ statewide rankings for Florida:

1. Pine View School, Osprey, No 1, state rankings; No. 7 nationally
2. Plant High, Tampa, No. 24 state rankings; No. 330 nationally
3. Strawberry Crest High, Dover, No. 48 state rankings; No. 672 nationally
4. Tampa Bay Tech, Tampa, No. 52 state rankings; No. 714 nationally
5. Sickles High, Tampa, No. 53 state rankings; No. 721 nationally
6. Robinson High, Tampa, No. 54 state rankings; No. 731 nationally
7. Steinbrenner High, Lutz, No. 58 state rankings; No. 771 nationally
8. Land O’ Lakes High, Land O’ Lakes, No. 71 state rankings; No. 953 nationally
9. James W. Mitchell High, New Port Richey, No. 80, state rankings; No. 1,062 nationally
10. Riverview High, Sarasota, No. 81 state rankings; No. 1,074 nationally
11. Wesley Chapel High, Wesley Chapel, No. 127 state rankings; No. 2,223 nationally
12. Fivay High, Hudson, No. 139 state rankings; No. 2,409 nationally

To see the full national ranking list, visit U.S. News online.

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