Photo by Erin Nelson
A member of the Spain Park High School Class of 2021 waves during his graduation ceremony on May 26, 2021.
U.S. News & World Report this week released its 2023 high school rankings, and both Spain Park and Hoover high schools were ranked among the top 15 high schools in Alabama.
Spain Park High came in at No. 6 in Alabama this year, moving up from No. 8 last year, and was No. 684 nationally. Hoover High was listed as No. 14 this year, moving up from No. 21, and was ranked No. 1,559 nationally.
U.S. News & World Report ranks schools on several factors, including graduation rates, how well students are prepared for college based on the percentage of seniors who had taken Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate tests and how they performed on those tests, how students performed on state assessments for math, reading and science, and how well Black, Hispanic and economically disadvantaged students performed on state assessments. Data from the 2020-21 school year was used for this year’s rankings.
At Spain Park, 59% of seniors had taken at least one AP exam, and 45% had passed at least one AP exam, the magazine reported. Fifty-one percent of students were deemed proficient in math, while 54% were proficient in reading and 55% were proficient in science. The student body was 19.6% Black, 8.8% Hispanic and 22% economically disadvantaged.
At Hoover, 45% of seniors had taken at least one AP exam, and 31% had passed at least one AP exam, the magazine reported. Forty-six percent of students were deemed proficient in math, while 47% were proficient in reading and 48% were proficient in science. The student body was 27.4% Black, 8.7% Hispanic and 25% economically disadvantaged.
Here were the top 20 high schools in Alabama:
- Loveless Academic Magnet Program High School, Montgomery
- Mountain Brook High School
- Homewood High School
- New Century Tech Demo High School, Huntsville
- Vestavia Hills High School
- Spain Park High School
- Brewbaker Tech Magnet High School, Montgomery
- James Clemens High School, Madison
- Oak Mountain High School, Shelby County
- Auburn High School
- Bob Jones High School, Madison
- Hewitt-Trussville High School
- Arab High School
- Hoover High School
- W.P. Davidson High School, Mobile County
- Booker T. Washington Magnet High School, Montgomery
- Huntsville High School
- Russellville High School
- Fairhope High School, Baldwin County
- Hartselle High School
See the complete list here, with links to additional information about each high school and more detail about how the rankings were compiled.
