Ventura County Area Schools in Newsweek's 2016 Ranking of the Nation's Top High Schools

Newsweek has published its 2016 ranking of the nation's "top 500 public high schools." The rankings were based on data from 16,285 public high schools from the National Center for Education Statistics.

Researchers determined the ranking by selecting schools at perform in the 70th percentile or higher in standardized state testing. From there, the ranking was done using the following criteria:

• 10% of ranking based on "Holding Power," or the proportion of 9th graders that stay enrolled through 12th grade.
• 10% based on the ratio of school counselors to students.
• 17.5% based on SAT/ACT test score performance.
• 17.5% based on AP/IB dual enrollment composite.
• 20% based on graduation rate
• 25% based on college enrollment rate.

Based on the above methodology, four local area schools made the top 500:

Oak Park High School ranked 51st overall and 7th in California

Westlake High School ranked 119th overall and 15th in California

Foothill Technology High School in Ventura ranked 393rd overall and 45th in California

Missing from this year's list that were on the 2015 list were Thousand Oaks High School (215th overall last year) and Calabasas High School (339th overall last year).

See more at www.newsweek.com/high-schools/americas-top-high-schools-2016.

Ventura County Area Schools in Newsweek 2015 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

In August, Newsweek published its 2015 ranking of the nation's "top public high schools." The rankings were based on data from 16,285 public high schools from the National Center for Education Statistics.

Researchers determined the ranking by selecting schools at perform in the 70th percentile or higher in standardized state testing. From there, the ranking was done using the following criteria:

• 10% of ranking based on "Holding Power" or the proportion of 9th graders that stay enrolled through 12th grade.
• 10% based on the ratio of school counselors to students.
• 17.5% based on SAT/ACT test score performance.
• 17.5% based on AP/IB dual enrollment composite.
• 20% based on graduation rate
• 25% based on college enrollment rate.

Based on the above methodology, four local area schools made the top 500:

Oak Park High School ranked 120th overall and 18th in California

Westlake High School ranked 210th overall and 26th in California

Thousand Oaks High School was 215th overall and 27th in California

Calabasas High School was 339th overall and 43rd in California.

See more at www.newsweek.com/high-schools/americas-top-high-schools-2015.

Ventura County Area Schools in U.S. News 2015 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

In May, U.S. News & World Report published its 2015 ranking of the nation's best public high schools. The rankings were based on data from 29,070 public high schools and from that total, 19,753 schools with high enough enrollment and sufficient data to be ranked.

As in 2012, 2013 and 2014, schools were ranked based on: (1) how well students tested in state-level reading and math proficiency*, taking into account disadvantaged student scores (who tend to score lower on tests); and (2) college readiness index (CRI), based on how well schools prepare students for college-level work.

* However, in 2015, the threshold for determining performance was reduced from 1/2 to 1/3rd of a standard deviation about the average school; this was done to reduce year-over-year volatility of the rankings.

The median CRI, measured on a scale of 0 to 100, was 19.42 (it was 18.17, 14.8 and 16.3 in 2014, 2013 and 2012 - looks like a positive trend). A CRI of 100 means that all 12th graders took and passed at least 1 Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test.

There were 2,199 California high schools and over 2 million students enrolled during the 2012-2013 survey period. To be ranked in California, schools must receive either a gold (top 500 nationally) or silver (top 501 to 2,527 nationally) medal, representing schools with CRI values at or above the 19.42 median.

Rankings of local high schools in the Conejo Valley, Ventura County and adjacent areas and summarized in the table above. There were 17 local schools that received gold or silver medal status and thus were ranked nationally and in California.  

Topping the local school rankings was Malibu High School at #68 in the state, leapfrogging Westlake High School (#76) and Foothill Technology High School (which was the top local area school the last two years). Rounding out the top 5 were Oak Park and Moorpark. 

Overall, our local schools did great. Aggregate College Readiness scores jumped by 4 1/2% as compared to the previous year.

While the rankings and underlying detailed information are interesting and informative, before coming to any conclusions, do check out the detailed school information available at www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/california.

Ventura County Area Schools in U.S. News 2014 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

In April, U.S. News & World Report published its 2014 ranking of the nation's best public high schools. The rankings were based on data from 31,242 public high schools and from that total, 19,411 schools with high enough enrollment and sufficient data to be ranked.

As in 2013 and 2012, schools were ranked based on: (1) how well students tested in state-level reading and math proficiency, taking into account disadvantaged student scores (who tend to score lower on tests); and (2) college readiness, based on how well schools prepare students for college-level work.

The median college readiness score, measured on a scale of 0 to 100, was 18.17 (it was 14.8 and 16.3 in 2013 and 2012). A readiness index of 100 means that all 12th graders took and passed at least 1 Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test.

There were 2,026 California high schools and over 2 million students enrolled during the 2011-2012 survey period. To be ranked in California, schools must receive either a gold (top 500 nationally) or silver (top 501 to 2,019 nationally) medal. 415 Callifornia schools received gold or silver medals (down from 501 in 2013).

Rankings of local high schools in the Conejo Valley, Ventura County and adjacent areas and summarized in the table above. There were 14 local schools that received gold or silver medal status and thus were ranked nationally and in California. Last year, Moorpark and Fillmore High Schools were on this list but were not ranked for some reason this year.

Topping the local school rankings for the 2nd year in a row was Foothill Technology High School in Ventura, which moved up 3 places to the 35th top rated school in California. Rounding out the top 5 were Westlake, Malibu, Oak Park and Calabasas High Schools.

Overall our local schools performed quite impressively! 19 out of the 23 schools on the list scored at or above the median college readiness scores.

While the rankings and underlying detailed information are interesting and informative, before coming to any conclusions, do check out the detailed school information available at www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/california.

Ventura County Schools in U.S. News 2013 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

This past April, U.S. News & World Report published its 4th ranking of the nation's best public high schools. The study covered nearly 22,000 public high schools across the country.

Schools again were ranked based on: (1) how well students tested in state-level reading and math proficiency, factoring in disadvantaged students, who tend to score lower on tests; and (2) college readiness, based on how well schools prepare students for college-level work via Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) programs.

The median college readiness, measured on a scale of 0 to 100, was 14.8 (it was 16.3 in 2012). A readiness index of 100 means that all 12th graders took and passed at least 1 AP or IB test. (More on the methodology)

There were 2,039 California high schools and nearly 2 million students enrolled during the 2010-2011 survey period. To be ranked in California, schools must receive either a gold (top 500 nationally) or silver (top 501 to 2,290 nationally) medal. 501 Callifornia schools received gold or silver medals.

Rankings of local high schools in the Conejo Valley, Ventura County and adjacent areas and summarized in the table below. There were 15 local schools that received gold or silver medal status and thus were ranked nationally and in California.

We compared the 2013 rankings and ratings with those published last year. I will say once again that I find the ranking methodolgy to be perplexing. For example, Royal High has college readiness and academic performance scores of 21.3 and 775 and was not nationally ranked, yet Fillmore High and Buena High received lower scores, and were nationally ranked. Why? Because the national rankings use "risk adjusted" indices to factor in an "achievement gap" of disadvantaged/minority students. So do take that into account when reviewing the information.

Foothill Technology High School in Ventura leaped to the top spot in local area rankings and 38th in the state of California, driven by a 22% jump in college readiness scores. Westlake High stayed steady while Malibu High dropped from 1st to 3rd in the rankings due to a drop in college readiness...though still a solid 74th in the state!

Oak Park High showed a huge improvement in college readiness that boosted its ranking to 75th in California! Calabasas High narrowly missed the top 100. The overall mean scores for the 23 schools on this list improved from a year ago, from 28.3 to 30.1 in college readiness and 794 to 803 in academic performance. Way to go, local students!

While the rankings and underlying detailed information are interesting and informative, before coming to any conclusions, do check out the detailed school information available at www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/california.