Thomas Jefferson Named Top High School In U.S. Again: U.S. News

VIRGINIA — Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County has been named the best high school in the United States, according to a new ranking by U.S. News and World Report. The magnet school was ranked No. 1 in 2020, too, and regularly ranks as the top school in the nation.

This year’s list ranks more than 17,800 public high schools throughout the country.

Among Northern Virginia schools, Fairfax County had 11 high schools ranked in the top 1,00o. Elsewhere in the region, Prince William had two high schools in the top 1,000, while Loudoun County, Arlington County and the city of Falls Church each had one high school ranked in the top 1,000.

The purpose of the rankings is to provide insight into academic performance among underserved groups, showing how well schools are supporting these students, Anita Narayan, managing editor of education at U.S. News, said in a news release.

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

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. The Davidson Academy of Nevada - Reno, Nevada
4. Payton College Preparatory High School - Chicago, Illinois
5. School for Advanced Studies - Miami, Florida
6. Sumner Academy of Arts and Science - Kansas City, Kansas
7. Merrol Hyde Magnet School - Hendersonville, Tennessee
8. BASIS Chandler - Chandler, Arizona
9. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology - Lawrenceville, Georgia
10. Signature School - Evansville, Indiana

The methodology used for this year’s ranking focused on six factors: college readiness, reading and math proficiency, reading and math performance, underserved student performance, college curriculum breadth and graduation rates.

The data used in this edition is from the 2018-2019 academic school year and, therefore, was not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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.

BASIS Chandler in Arizona is at the top of the list for charter schools, and High Technology High School in Lincroft, New Jersey, is the No. 1 STEM school.

Among the 100 highest ranked schools in Virginia, 44 were located in Northern Virginia. The highest ranked school in Arlington County was Yorktown High School, while Battlefield High School was the highest ranked in Prince William County and Briar Woods High School was the highest ranked in Loudoun County.

Led by high schools in Fairfax County, here are the highest ranked schools in Northern Virginia and where they rank on the national list:

1. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Fairfax County

154. Langley High School, Fairfax County

160. McLean High School, Fairfax County

209. Marshall High School, Fairfax County

287. W.T. Woodson High School, Fairfax County

297. Chantilly High School, Fairfax County

328. Oakton High School, Fairfax County

386. Madison High School, Fairfax County

404. West Springfield High School, Fairfax County

553. Yorktown High School, Arlington County

583. George Mason High School, City of Falls Church

614. Robinson Secondary School, Fairfax County

687. Lake Braddock Secondary School, Fairfax County

833. Battlefield High School, Prince William County

880. Briar Woods High School, Loudoun County

985. Patriot High School, Prince William County