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Williamson County High Schools Continue Tradition of Excellence

Published April 21, 2016

Williamson County high schools are among the best in the state and the nation according to rankings by two national publications.

This week, The Washington Post released its annual list of the nation’s “Most Challenging High Schools” while the U.S News & World Report published its list of “America’s Best High Schools.” Williamson County schools were featured prominently on both lists.

“Although we know how hard our students, parents, teachers, staff and administrators work towards a standard of excellence, it is both flattering and reassuring to be recognized nationally for our academic accomplishments,” said WCS Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Schools Dr. Charles Farmer.

Eight Williamson County high schools are listed among the top 17 “Most Challenging High Schools” in the state of Tennessee according to The Washington Post.

The list is compiled each year by education columnist Jay Mathews. To compile the rankings, Mathews used an index formula which included the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge tests given at a school each year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated in May or June.

The Washington Post’s Most Challenging High Schools in TN

  • Brentwood High – 3rd
  • Ravenwood High – 4th
  • Franklin High – 7th
  • Independence High – 9th
  • Centennial High – 10th
  • Page High – 12th
  • Summit High – 13th
  • Fairview High – 17th

In addition, the U.S. News & World Report lists three Williamson County high schools among its top 10 in Tennessee, and six among its top 25. Not only was Brentwood High ranked fifth in the state, but it is listed as #241 in the nation. Ravenwood High’s national rank is #682 and Franklin High’s is #1,036.

The U.S. News & World Report’s Best High Schools in TN

  • Brentwood High – 5th
  • Ravenwood High – 7th
  • Franklin High – 8th
  • Centennial High – 12th
  • Independence High – 14th
  • Page High – 21st

Those rankings are determined by evaluating schools in four phases. The first three steps ensured that the schools serve all of their students well, using their performance on the math and reading parts of their state proficiency tests and graduation rates as the benchmarks. For those schools that made it past the first three steps, a fourth step assessed the degree to which schools prepare students for college-level work.