5 IL High Schools Crack Nation's Top 100: U.S. News

ILLINOIS — Five public high schools in Illinois were ranked among the 2023-24 Best High Schools, released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

Families can use the annual rankings to compare schools at the national, state, and local levels on factors such as academic performance, graduation rates, and college readiness, according to a news release. U.S. News reviewed 25,000 schools and ranked 17,680 of them.

Here are the top 100 public high schools in Illinois (the first number represents the state ranking; the second in parentheses is the national ranking):

1. Payton College Prep, Chicago (10)

2. Northside College Prep, Chicago (37)

3. Jones College Prep, Chicago (60)

4. Whitney Young Magnet High School, Chicago (63)

5. Lane Tech High School, Chicago (70)

No other schools were listed in the Top 100, according to the list. However, the following schools rounded out the Top 10 schools in Illinois.

6. Adlai Stevenson High School, Lincolnshire

7. Vernon Hills High School

8. Proviso Math and Science Academy, Forest Park

9. Lake Forest High School

10. Hinsdale Central High School

In general, the highest-ranked schools had students who performed well on state assessment for math, reading and science, U.S. News said. They also performed strongly in meeting the needs of underserved students, including those who are Black, Hispanic or from low-income households. The schools had a breadth of curriculum offerings and high graduation rates, and their students performed well on Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams.

(You can read more about teachers making a difference in the local community here).

U.S. News said eleven of the top 20 ranked schools were charter or magnet schools.

In national rankings, the top five schools are, respectively: The Early College at Guilford, Greensboro, North Carolina; Signature School at Evansville, Indiana; The School for Advanced Studies in Miami; The Davidson Academy of Nevada at Reno; and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology at Alexandria, Virginia.