Montour, Moon Area Unranked on U.S. News and World Report's 'Best Schools' List

Montour High School and Moon Area High School are unranked in U.S. News and World Report's annual rankings of America's best high schools released on Tuesday. 

The number one high school in Pennsylvania is Julia R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School in Philadelphia. Nearby Mt. Lebanon and Quaker Valley school districts ranked in the top 15. 

Schools are evaluated based on overall student performance on state tests, Advanced Placement tests and International Baccalaureate exams; rankings also take into account how well students educate black, Hispanic and economically disadvantaged students, according to a release from U.S. News. 

The rankings are designed to capture how well high schools educate all of their students and prepare them for college-level work, the magazine said.

Rankings are based on several factors: college readiness, math and reading proficiency, and student-to-teacher ratio.

When it comes to math and reading, the data shows Moon Area scored 2.9 out of 5 for math proficiency and 3.1 for reading based on student Pennsylvania System of School Assessment results. Montour scored 3.0 in math and 3.1 in reading proficiency

Moon has a ratio of 14 students and Montour has 13 to every one teacher. Moon's "college readiness" index is 18.3 and Montour's is 15.5 out of a possible 100, which is based on Advanced Placement exam participation rates and percentages of students passing at least one exam. Moon's AP participation rate is 20 percent, while Montour's is 22 percent. 

Top 15 Pennsylvania high schools, based on U.S. News rankings:

1. Julia R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School, Philadelphia

2. Lehigh Valley Academy Reg Charter School, Bethlehem

3. Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy, Erie

4. Wyomissing Area Junior/​Senior High School, Wyomissing

5. Conestoga High School, Berwyn

6. Central High School, Philadelphia

7. Upper St. Clair High School, Pittsburgh

8. Radnor High School, Radnor

9. Lower Moreland High School, Huntingdon Valley

10. Unionville High School, Kennett Square 

11. Mt. Lebanon High School, Pittsburgh

12. North Allegheny Senior High School, Wexford

13. Council Rock North Senior High School, Newtown

14. Quaker Valley High School, Leetsdale

15. Pittsburgh Allderdice High School, Pittsburgh

Specifics on Moon Area's results are available here.

Specifics on Montour's results are available here. 

Learn how U.S. News calculated the Best High Schools rankings 

See the full 2013 U.S. News Best High Schools rankings