PA's Best High Schools: New Rankings Released

PENNSYLVANIA — Several schools in Pennsylvania are among America’s best, according to rankings released Tuesday by the education platform Niche.

The new 2023 Best Schools and Districts rankings provide insight for parents on 92,743 public schools, 30,112 private schools and 11,820 school districts nationwide.

Here are the top 25 public high schools in Pennsylvania, according to Niche:

1. Julia Masterman, Philadelphia
2. Conestoga Senior High School, Berwyn
3. Radnor Senior High School, Radnor
4. Downingtown STEM, Downingtown
5. Lower Merion High School, Lower Merion
6. Harriton Senior High School, Lower Merion
7. North Allegheny High School, Wexford
8. Central High School, Philadelphia
9. Unionville High School, Kennett Square
10. Strath Haven High School, Wallingford
11. Fox Chapel Area High School, O'Hara
12. Central Bucks High School East, Doylestown
13. Upper St. Clair High School, Pittsburgh
14. Mt. Lebanon Senior High School, Pittsburgh
15. Great Valley High School, Malvern
16. Wissahickon Senior High School, Ambler
17. State College Area High School, State College
18. Hershey High School, Hershey
19. Central Bucks High School West, Doylestown
20. Bayard Rustin High School, West Chester
21. Garnet Valley High School, Glen Mills
22. Upper Dublin High School, Upper Dublin
23. Central Bucks High School South, Warrington
24. Plymouth-Whitemarsh Senior High School, Plymouth Meeting
25. North Penn Senior High School, Lansdale

Here are the top 25 private high schools in Pennsylvania, according to Niche:

1. Germantown Friends School, Philadelphia
2. Mercersburg Academy, Mercersburg
3. Episcopal Academy, Newtown Square
4. Baldwin School, Bryn Mawr
5. Hill School, Pottstown
6. Haverford School, Haverford
7. Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy, Bryn Mawr
8. Friends Central School, Wynnewood
9. Shady Side Academy, Pittsburgh
10. Linden Hall, Lititz
11. George School, Newtown
12. Winchester Thurston School, Pittsburgh
13. Moravian Academy, Bethlehem
14. Grier School, Birmingham
15. Shipley School, Bryn Mawr
16. Westtown School, West Chester
17. Germantown Academy, Fort Washington
18. Friends Select School, Philadelphia
19. William Penn Charter School, Philadelphia
20. Sewickley Academy, Sewickley
21. Agnes Irwin School, Rosemont
22. Wyoming Seminary College Preparatory School, Kingston
23. Ellis School, Pittsburgh
24. Abington Friends, Jenkintown
25. Malvern Preparatory School, Malvern

You can view the full rankings here.

Be sure to note any of your top schools that ranked prominently nationwide.

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, as well as quantitative data from sources such as the U.S. Department of Education to evaluate teachers, resources and facilities.

Niche named the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, North Carolina, the top public school. Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, is the best private school.

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, charter and magnet schools as well as schools for STEM and the arts among many others.

Check back with Patch later this week for coverage on Niche's ranking of Pennsylvania’s best overall school districts