Three Houston High Schools Among 'Most Challenging' in USA

HOUSTON, TX — Three high schools in Houston finished near the top of the list of the most challenging high schools in the country, compiled by the Washington Post. The Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men, in the Fifth Ward, came in at #2, with the top spot going to the BASIS Phoenix school in Arizona.

The newspaper's 19th annual survey, released earlier this month, ranked Andrew Carnegie Vanguard High School as the 14th most challenging, and the Young Women's College Preparatory Academy in the 19th spot. Carnegie Vanguard is in the Fourth Ward and Young Women's College Prep is near Museum Park.

A total of 233 high schools across the United States are listed in the Washington Post rankings. To determine the rankings, the newspaper calculated an index formula by taking a school's number of advanced tests given each year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated that year. The tests included Advanced Placement, the International Baccalaureate and the Advanced International Certificate of Education.

To see the full list of high schools ranked by the Washington Post, click here.

Thirteen Texas high schools, including Houston's trio, landed in the top 30 in the Post rankings, the most of any state in the country, the Houston Chronicle reported.

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