Top 1500 Highschools in the US
June 18, 2009
Eric Villard

Must be something in the water – Eldersburg’s Century and Liberty High Schools have placed in the top 1500 United States schools, according to a recent Newsweek study.

Placing at 1428 and 1015, respectively, the schools have made it into the top 6 percent of learning institutions, according to an equation that measured the number of Advanced Placement tests taken divided by the number of graduating seniors.

The placing didn’t seem to come as a surprise to Dwayne Piper, principal of Liberty. “We live in an area where, for the most part, parents are highly educated and have high educational standards for their children,” he said. “Many of our students set their sights on good colleges – and they know that the best way to prepare themselves for college and to be competitive is to take the most challenging or rigorous courses available. AP courses fit that bill.”

Though having these challenging courses available for students could put a strain on the school, Piper said. “We offered 22 Advanced Placement courses for our students this year,” he mentioned. “While doing so creates some stresses or pressure points at other locations in the master schedule because of limited staffing, the students benefit by having many choices from which to choose.”

The gap between the two schools, Piper stressed, was nothing worth noting. “Because variables in student population change from year to year, one must keep in mind that a school's ranking can jump up or slide down on the list very easily from one year to the next.”

Unfortunately, Principal Andrew Cockley of Century could not be reached for comment because of time constraints. Piper had faith Century could have a stronger placing the next time around. “They have many strong students, as we do, and could very easily improve their standing on this list for next year.”

Even with the good placement this year, both schools in previous years had managed to place higher in the standings. In 2007, Century had placed 846 while Liberty placed 492. Comparatively, the highest placing school in Maryland was Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, which ranked at 38. The state has a total of 83 high schools in the top 1500.

Links:

Think the formula was too simple? You’re not alone. A related Newsweek article about the backlash from some teachers regarding the list: http://www.carrollk12.org/lhs/

Newsweek’s top 1500 schools: http://www.newsweek.com/id/201160

Century High School home page: http://www.centuryhigh.org/

Liberty High School home page: http://www.carrollk12.org/lhs/

Eldersburg.Net E-Mail Newsletter  Register to receive weekly updates about Eldersburg, MD news, contests, giveways, events, coupons, and more. Email:

Eldersburg Area Sponsored Links Maryland Mortgage Services - Home Mortgages, Home Equity Loans, Refinancing, Reverse Mortgages, More from Gold Standard Financial Maryland Home Remodeling Contractor- Trademark Remodeling provides home remodeling, additions, garages, and more. SearchCarrollCounty.com - Carroll County, Maryland Business Directory Kent Systems - Carroll County, MD carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, ceramic tile cleaning, and emergency water extraction Advertise Here - Promote your business on Eldersburg's #1 Web Site!

Eldersburg Area Business Cards Display your business card here