Top 50 GA High Schools For 2022: U.S. News

GEORGIA — The best school in the state is again Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology in Lawrenceville, according to a new national ranking by U.S. News and World Report.

The Gwinnett County school is also No. 9 among all public high schools in the nation on the list.

This year’s look at the best high schools in the U.S. evaluated more than 17,800 schools nationwide.

The 2022 ranking of best high schools is intended to show how well the nation’s public schools serve all students, regardless of achievement level, by teaching them basic skills and preparing them for college-level work, according to a news release from U.S. News.

Families can also use the rankings to see how schools compare at the national, state and local levels on factors such as graduation rates and college readiness.

These are the top 50 Georgia schools, according to U.S. News:

1. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology, Gwinnett County School District
2. Columbus High School, Muscogee County Public Schools
3. Davidson Magnet School, Richmond County Public Schools
4. Walton High School, Cobb County School District
5. Lambert High School, Forsyth County Public Schools
6. Northview High School, Fulton County Schools
7. Savannah Arts Academy, Savannah-Chatham County
8. DeKalb School of the Arts, DeKalb County School District
9. South Forsyth High School, Forsyth County Public Schools
10. Lassiter High School, Cobb County School District
11. Cambridge High School, Fulton County Schools
12. Alpharetta High School, Fulton County Schools
13. Chattahoochee High School, Fulton County Schools
14. McIntosh High School, Fayette County Public Schools
15. Decatur High School, City Schools of Decatur
16. North Gwinnett High School, Gwinnett County School District
17. DeKalb Early College Academy, DeKalb County School District
18. Johns Creek High School, Fulton County Schools
19. North Oconee High School, Oconee County Public Schools
20. Pope High School, Cobb County School District
21. Martha Ellen Stilwell School for the Performing Arts, Clayton County Public Schools
22. Starrs Mill High School, Fayette County Public Schools
23. Elite Scholars Academy School, Clayton County Public Schools
24. Buford High School, Buford City
25. Milton High School, Fulton County Schools
26. Johnson Magnet, Richmond County Public Schools
27. Brookwood High School, Gwinnett County School District
28. Roswell High School, Fulton County Schools
29. West Forsyth High School, Forsyth County Public Schools
30. Grady High School, Atlanta Public Schools
31. Harrison High School, Cobb County School District
32. Peachtree Ridge High School, Gwinnett County School District
33. Hillgrove High School, Cobb County School District
34. Parkview High School, Gwinnett County School District
35. Oconee County High School, Oconee County Public Schools
36. Mill Creek High School, Gwinnett County School District
37. Chamblee Charter High School, DeKalb County School District
38. Archer High School, Gwinnett County School District
39. Atlanta Classical Academy, Atlanta Public Schools
40. Jefferson High School, Jefferson City
41. Greenbrier High School, Columbia County Public Schools
42. Wheeler High School, Cobb County School District
43. Forsyth Central High School, Forsyth County Public Schools
44. Allatoona High School, Cobb County School District
45. Whitewater High School, Fayette County Public Schools
46. Kennesaw Mountain High School, Cobb County School District
47. Grayson High School, Gwinnett County School District
48. Houston County High School, Houston County Public Schools
49. Collins Hill High School, Gwinnett County School District
50. Lakeside High School, Columbia County Public 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. Signature School - Evansville, Indiana
4. School for Advanced Studies - Miami, Florida
5. Payton College Preparatory High School - Chicago, Illinois
6. The Davidson Academy of Nevada - Reno, Nevada
7. Central Magnet School - Murfreesboro, Tennessee
8. The School for the Talented and Gifted - Dallas, Texas
9. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology - Lawrenceville, Georgia
10. Julia R. Masterman Secondary School - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

This year’s schools were ranked on six measures: college readiness, college curriculum breadth, state assessment performance, state assessment proficiency, reading and math proficiency, reading and math performance, underserved student performance and graduation rates.

The data used in this year’s ranking is from the 2019-20 academic school year. U.S. News adjusted its calculation of these measures to account for the impact COVID-19 had on schools in the 2019-20 school year.

Since most states closed schools for in-person instruction starting in March 2020 — typically just before most states conduct assessments — the U.S. Department of Education granted waivers allowing all states to forgo state testing for the 2019-20 school year.

To account for this, U.S. News relied on past assessment data from the three prior ranking years. Researchers also incorporated state science assessment data from the 2018-19 school year.

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.

Signature School in Indiana is at the top of the list for charter schools, and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia is the No. 1 magnet school. The Davidson Academy of Nevada is the top STEM school.