Ardrey Kell among top 10 NC high schools. See how 9 more near Charlotte fit in new ranking
Ardrey Kell High, the largest high school in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, ranks No. 10 on U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 Best High Schools in North Carolina.
The list, released Tuesday, included several local schools in the top 25 for North Carolina and a Greensboro school as No. 1 in the country — The Early College at Guilford. Steam Early College at N.C. A&T was No. 2 in North Carolina behind The Early College at Guilford.
Onslow Early College in Jacksonville (No. 3), Wake NCSU STEM Early College High School in Raleigh (No. 4) and Raleigh Charter High School round out the top 5 in North Carolina.
Local schools in the top 25 for N.C. include:
▪ Community School of Davidson, No. 13
▪ Marvin Ridge High in Waxhaw, No. 14
▪ Pine Lake Preparatory in Mooresville, No. 15
▪ Gray Stone Day School in Misenheimer, No. 16
▪ Central Academy of Technology and Arts in Monroe, No. 17
▪ Providence High in Charlotte, No. 18
▪ J.T. Williams Secondary Montessori in Charlotte, No. 19
▪ Lake Norman Charter in Huntersville, No. 21
▪ Weddington High in Matthews, No. 23.
To develop its rankings, U.S. News & World Report evaluated nearly 18,000 public high schools in the United States. The rankings showcase schools whose students demonstrate outstanding outcomes, surpass anticipated benchmarks and achieve high graduation rates.
The highest-ranked U.S. public schools demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math, reading and science state assessments and earned qualifying scores in an array of college-level exams, among others, according to U.S. News & World Report.
National charter school rankings
U.S. News & World Report also ranked charter schools on a separate list from public schools. Raleigh Charter High School ranked highest on the nationwide charter list at No. 33.
Other N.C. charter high schools ranked nationally include:
▪ Woods Charter School in Chapel Hill at No. 103
▪ Community School of Davidson at No. 118
▪ Pine Lake Preparatory in Mooresville at No. 120
▪ Gray Stone Day in Misenheimer at No. 125
▪ Lake Norman Charter in Huntersville at No. 137
▪ Research Triangle High School in Durham at No. 138
▪ North Carolina Leadership Academy in Kernersville at No. 151.
Other Charlotte-area charter schools in the Top 500 include:
▪ Bradford Preparatory School in Charlotte at No. 302
▪ Union Academy in Monroe at 314
▪ York Preparatory Academy in Rock Hill, S.C., at No. 424.
More local rankings
U.S. News & World Report ranked the Highland School of Technology in Gastonia No. 77 in the country for best magnet schools nationwide.
Northwest School of the Arts in Charlotte ranked No. 139, and Myers Park High in Charlotte ranked No. 202 under the best magnet school category.
This story was originally published August 29, 2023 at 6:00 AM.
