Fairfax County Schools Among Top Districts In New Ranking

Fairfax County Public Schools is in the top range of Virginia's best school districts for the 2019-2020 school year, according to the new rankings from data compiler Niche. The rankings were released Monday as part of the website's 2020 K-12 rankings.

The top 50 school districts in the state made the cut. Each Virginia school district received a letter grade in the following categories: Academics; Diversity; Teachers; College Prep; Clubs & Activities; Health & Safety; Administration; Sports; Food; and Resources & Facilities.

To arrive at the rankings, Niche looked at data from the U.S. Department of Education as well as test scores, college data, and ratings collected from Niche users. (You can read more about the methodology here.)

FCPS was ranked sixth, receiving an overall grade of A from Niche. It received an A or A+ in every category except teachers and health/safety, which were graded with a B+.

Comments from current students, alumni, and parents are included in the analysis, as well as observations about things like campus life, extracurricular activities, sports options, diversity, and programs for gifted and special needs students. One student reviewer summed up the school district like this: "Teachers are very supportive and willing to work with you as long as you put in effort into their classes. Great facilities and the students and teachers have very diverse backgrounds."

The top-ranked school district in Virginia is Arlington Public Schools. Niche gave the school system an A or an A+ in every category. Last year, Arlington was also No. 1. (See last year's list as a comparison: Virginia's Best School Districts: New Rankings Released)

Niche looked at more than 94,000 public schools, 4,100 private schools and nearly 11,000 school districts across the country. The rankings are meant to help parents and students find schools that best fit their needs.

"Unlike traditional school rankings, which rely almost exclusively on test scores and academic performance, Niche's rankings provide a real-life view of what it's like to attend a given school," the company said in a news release.

See the top 50 school districts in Virginia as ranked by Niche.com.