US News School Rankings: See How Concord High Schools Performed

CONCORD, CA — Clayton Valley Charter High School is Concord's highest rated public high school, according to new rankings from the US News and World Report.

Based on its graduation rate, college readiness, curriculum breadth, and test scores, US News ranked Clayton Valley High School 315th in California, 2,203rd in the country, and 56th in the San Francisco metro area. It received an overall score of 87.65 out of 100. See here for a further breakdown of the score.

Concord High School ranked second in Concord, and received an overall score of 64.97 out of 100. It ranked 847th in California, 6,250th in the country, and 98th in the San Francisco metro area. See here for a further breakdown.

Mt. Diablo High School ranked third in Concord, and received an overall score of 36.49 out of 100. It placed 1,186th in California, 11,331st nationally, and 123rd in the San Francisco metro area. See here for a further breakdown.

Ygnacio Valley High School ranked last in Concord, with an overall score of 35.73 out of 100. It placed 1,190th in California, 11,467th nationally, and 124th in the San Francisco metro area. See here for a full breakdown.

Whitney High School in Cerritos is the top school in California, according to a new national ranking by U.S. News and World Report. This year's list of best high schools evaluated more than 17,800 schools nationwide, including 1,603 in the Golden State.

The 2022 ranking of best high schools is intended to show how well the nation's public schools serve all students, regardless of achievement level, by teaching them basic skills and preparing them for college-level work, according to a news release from U.S. News.

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

While thousands of schools were evaluated, 10 California schools were ranked among the top 100 nationally, according to U.S. News. When you filter by California only, the following 25 schools were ranked the best in the Golden State:

1. Whitney High School, Cerritos (No. 14 nationally)
2. California Academy of Mathematics and Science, Carson (No. 15 nationally)
3. Oxford Academy, Cypress (No. 16 nationally)
4. Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy, Wilmington (No. 62 nationally)
5. Preuss School UCSD, La Jolla (No. 71 nationally)
6. Lowell High School, San Francisco (No. 82 nationally)
7. University High School, Fresno (No. 92 nationally)
8. Mission San Jose High School, Fremont (No. 94 nationally)
9. Dr. T.J. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy, Gilroy (No. 95 nationally)
10. Riverside Stem Academy, Riverside (No. 100 nationally)
11. Lynbrook High School, San Jose (No. 101 nationally)
12. Eunice Sato Academy of Math & Science, Long Beach (No. 105 nationally)
13. Hawthorne Math and Science Academy, Hawthorne (No. 121 nationally)
14. Monta Vista High School, Cupertino (No. 129 nationally)
15. Western Center Academy, Hemet (No. 137 nationally)
16. Stockton Collegiate International Secondary, Stockton (No. 149 nationally)
17. Canyon Crest Academy, San Diego (No. 156 nationally)
18. Dougherty Valley High School, San Ramon (No. 158 nationally)
19. Lennox Mathematics, Science and Technology Academy, Lennox (No. 175 nationally)
20. Saratoga High School, Saratoga (No. 176 nationally)
21. Technology High School, Rohnert Park (No. 187 nationally)
22. Henry M. Gunn High School, Palo Alto (No. 188 nationally)
23. University Preparatory Academy Charter, San Jose (No. 193 nationally)
24. Downtown Business High School, Los Angeles (No. 194 nationally)
25. West Campus High School, Sacramento (No. 199 nationally)

You can search the full list here.

Last year, Oxford Academy in Cypress sat at the top of the list and ranked no. 11 nationally, while Whitney High School in Cerritos took second place. This year Whitney High also jumped from no. 25 to no. 14 on the national list.
Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy in Wilmington also jumped up several spots, advancing from no. 8 statewide and no. 84 nationally to no. 4 statewide and no. 62 nationally.

No California schools made the top ten national ranking.

SEE THE 2021 RANKING: CA's Top 100 Public High Schools Ranked By U.S. News

This year, the top 15 schools nationally are in 14 different states.
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, was ranked No. 1 in the nation, as well as among magnet schools.
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. Signature School - Evansville, Indiana
4. School for Advanced Studies - Miami, Florida
5. Payton College Preparatory High School - Chicago, Illinois
6. The Davidson Academy of Nevada - Reno, Nevada
7. Central Magnet School - Murfreesboro, Tennessee
8. The School for the Talented and Gifted - Dallas, Texas
9. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology - Lawrenceville, Georgia
10. Julia R. Masterman Secondary School - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

This year's schools were ranked on six measures: college readiness, college curriculum breadth, state assessment performance, state assessment proficiency, reading and math proficiency, reading and math performance, underserved student performance and graduation rates.

The data used in this year's ranking is from the 2019-20 academic school year. U.S. News adjusted its calculation of these measures to account for the impact COVID-19 had on schools in the 2019-20 school year.

Since most states closed schools for in-person instruction starting in March 2020 — typically just before most states conduct assessments — the U.S. Department of Education granted waivers allowing all states to forgo state testing for the 2019-20 school year.

To account for this, U.S. News relied on past assessment data from thethree prior ranking years. Researchers also incorporated state science assessment data from the 2018-19 school year.

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.

Signature School in Indiana is at the top of the list for charter schools, and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia is the No. 1 magnet school. The Davidson Academy of Nevada is the top STEM school.