Olentangy High School (OHS) and Olentangy Liberty High School (OLHS) are once again in elite company. For the third year in a row, both schools are among the top 500 public high schools in America ranked by Newsweek in their May 18, 2008 magazine.OHS is ranked 436 with a Challenge Index score of 2.12 and an Equity and Excellence (E/E) percentage of 29.2; OLHS is ranked 375 with a Challenge Index score of 2.26 and an Equity and Excellence percentage of 46.2.
The ranking system is based on the number of 2007 Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests a school gives that is then divided by the number of seniors who graduated that year. This calculation provides the Challenge Index score that is then ranked from highest to lowest. The E/E rate indicates the percentage of all seniors who had at least one score on an AP test that would qualify them for college credit. The average E/E rate for all U.S. schools is about 15 percent and both of Olentangy’s high schools are well above this average. Over the three-years that the schools have been part of the Newsweek list, the Challenge Index scores have increase by .23 for OHS and .22 for OLHS.
Only 32 high schools in Ohio were on the top 1,355 list. Eight of these schools are from Central, Ohio including Dublin Jerome #284, Bexley #404, Dublin Coffman #692, Upper Arlington #739, Dublin Scioto #876 and Westerville South, #1155. When the Newsweek list is broken down by state, OLHS is ranked ninth and OHS is 11th in Ohio.
In addition, of the 27 school districts in Ohio with at least one high school on the list, Olentangy has the lowest Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 expenditure per pupil in Central Ohio and is the third lowest for all of the districts. The two districts that have a slightly lower expenditure per pupil for FY 07 are West Clermont Local (Glen Este High School in Cincinnati), ranked #1353 and Jackson Local Schools (Jackson High School in Massillon), ranked #1046.
“Academic achievement is our primary focus,” said Interim Superintendent Jenny Hooie. ”We are pleased that both of our high schools are among the top 500 at the national level and top 15 state wide. In line with our continuous improvement process, we will strive to provide even more opportunities for students to take and excel in Advanced Placement courses as part of our mission to facilitate maximum learning for every student.”
To read more and to view the complete list, visit www.newsweek.com/id/39380