Shorewood High School Ranks Among 2022’s Best In WI: U.S. News

SHOREWOOD, WI — Shorewood High School came in with high marks against other schools in Wisconsin, according to the latest national ranking by U.S. News and World Report. The list evaluated more than 17,800 schools across the country.

The point of the 2022 ranking is to show how well public schools in the nation are serving their students, regardless of achievement level, by teaching basic skills and preparing them for college work, according to a news release from U.S. News.

The rankings also compare schools at the national, state and local levels. Shorewood High School came in at No. 525 in national rankings, No. 12 in Wisconsin High School rankings, and No. 8 in Milwaukee metro high schools.

Shorewood High School Principal Tim Kenney told Patch he takes the various rankings from different sites with a grain of salt, but the newest one from U.S. News is a "testimony to work and resiliency" the school has had through the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are pleased to once again be on the U.S. News and World Report list of top high schools in the nation, state and Milwaukee region," Shorewood Superintendent JoAnn Sternke said in a statement to Patch. "This is one of many ways that gives evidence to our commitment to our mission of Equity, Growth, and Excellence for All."

RELATED: North Shore School Among Wisconsin's Top High Schools: 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 the
three 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.