Annandale, Thomas Jefferson Among Top 35 High Schools in Virginia, U.S. News & World Report Says

Fairfax County is home to the top five public high schools in Virginia, according to the U.S. News and World Report’s 2013 Best High Schools rankings released Tuesday.

U.S. News generated the rankings through a partnership with American Institutes for Research, looking at students’ performance on standardized tests and how successfully schools educated black, Hispanic and low-income students.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology was once again ranked the top school in Virginia. It was ranked No. 4 of all schools nationally, down from its No. 2 post in 2012.

Replacing TJ at No. 2 was BASIS Tucson in Arizona, which jumped from sixth in 2012.

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Where Annandale Area Schools Rank

Annandale High School is ranked 27th in Virginia, and 649th nationally, a significant jump since the school wasn't ranked last year. W.T. Woodson in Fairfax is ranked 5th in the state and 116th nationally. JEB Stuart (844th nationally) and Falls Church (603rd nationally) high schools are ranked 32nd and 26th respectively in the state according to the report. 

According to the list, the School for the Talented and Gifted in the Dallas Independent School District held onto the title of top high school in the nation.

Click here for more information on U.S. News and World Report’s 2013 Best High School rankings.

U.S. News' list is just one of the many Fairfax schools make each year. Earlier this month, a number of area schools earned a national ranking on the Washington Post Challenge Index.

Newsweek also releases a list of best high schools each year, usually in May.

How much stock do you put into national rankings? How do you measure a good school? Tell us in the comments.