Seven Chesterfield County high schools rank in top 10% nationally

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Seven Chesterfield County schools rank in the top 10 percent of U.S. high schools, according to the 2014 list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools. Only 2,093 of the country’s 22,000 public high schools earned this recognition. More than half of the 13 Richmond-area schools on the list are part of Chesterfield County Public Schools.

Here are the Chesterfield County schools recognized:

  • Midlothian High
  • Cosby High
  • Monacan High
  • James River High
  • Clover Hill High
  • Matoaca High
  • Bird High

Superintendent Marcus Newsome said, “These rankings confirm that the school system’s strategic plan, the Design for Excellence 2020, is helping students prepare for success after high school by increasing the rigor of the curriculum and expecting more from every student. We celebrate this recognition of our high schools by a nationally known organization. Graduates of Chesterfield County Public Schools are well-prepared for success when they move on to college or career.”

America’s Most Challenging High Schools are listed annually by the Washington Post, to recognize the schools doing the best job of persuading average students to take college-level courses and tests. Rankings are determined by dividing the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at each school by the number of graduates. Details are available here: http://apps.washingtonpost.com/local/highschoolchallenge/.

America’s Most Challenging High Schools does not include magnet or charter high schools that enroll a high concentration of top students, according to the Washington Post, but those schools are included in a list of public elites. Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School is part of that list of outstanding public schools.