Columbia Is Eighth Best Suburb for Education: Movoto

When real estate resource Movoto recently ranked the best suburbs for education in America, Columbia came in eighth.

Neighboring Ellicott City was third on the list.

Rankings were based on high school graduation rate; money spent per pupil; student-teacher ratio; and ratings compiled by nonprofit greatschools.org, an online resource profiling schools nationwide.

According to Movoto, Columbia and Ellicott City both spend $16,925 per pupil and have graduation rates of 94 percent. Where Columbia stood apart was in its low student-to-teacher ratio of 13-1, according to Movoto, which ranked Columbia seventh best in this category in its list of 109 suburbs.

“These rankings are a testament to the phenomenal educators in our schools, the families who collaborate with us to ensure student success and the funding support we receive from the county and state...” Renee Foose, Howard County Public School System superintendent, wrote about the recognition. “Howard County is a place that is committed to education in words and deeds, and we will continue to hold up our end of the bargain in delivering the kind of education students truly deserve.”

Here are the top 10 suburbs for education in America, according to Movoto:

1. Newton, MA
2. Plymouth, MN
3. Ellicott City, MD
4. Minnetonka, MN
5. Dublin, OH
6. Wauwatosa, WI
7. Evanston, IL
8. Columbia, MD
9. Towson, MD
10. Plano, TX

More about the rankings is available from Movoto.

A 94 percent graduation rate made Howard County schools stand out, according to Movoto. That was well above the national graduation rate, which is approximately 80 percent, according to the most recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics. Credit: Patch File Photo.