U.S. News Ranks Upper St. Clair One of Pennsylvania's Top High Schools

The coveted U.S. News and World Report rankings of the best public high schools in America released Tuesday place Upper St. Clair High School near the top.

The annual list ranks Upper St. Clair No. 7 among Pennsylvania's 687 public, magnet and charter high schools and No. 440 out of more than 21,000 high schools nationwide.

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, according to U.S. News.

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

Upper St. Clair shows 94 percent math proficiency and 94 percent reading proficiency based on student Pennsylvania System of School Assessment results.

The high school has a ratio of 16 students to every one teacher, and a college readiness index of 48, which is based on Advanced Placement exam participation rates and percentages of students passing at least one exam. 

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

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, Pittsburgh

13. Council Rock North Senior High School, Newtown

14. Quaker Valley High School, Leetsdale

15. Pittsburgh Allderdice High School, Pittsburgh

Upper St. Clair School District was recently ranked No. 1 on the Pittsburgh Business Times' top performing school districts in Pennsylvania and the high school was ranked No. 1 in highest SAT scores in the Pittsburgh area.