High school earns high marks in national school ranking

Duanesburg High School was ranked as one of the best high schools in America. 

The recognition was announced by the U.S. News & World Report in its 2021 Best High Schools rankings. The rankings identify the top-performing public high schools at the national and state level and include published data on more than 17,800 schools. 

Only the top 40% of all public high schools in the U.S. are recognized. U.S. News badges are widely recognized as symbols of excellence in education. 

“This is fantastic recognition for our high school, but it’s really an award for the entire Duanesburg Central School District,” Superintendent of Schools James Niedermeier said. “Students get their educational foundation and work ethic in grades K-8, and then the baton is passed to the high school, where our educators do nothing short of elevating students to their maximum potential.”

The top-ranked schools have a high rate of students who scored above expectations in math and reading state assessments, passed an array of college-level exams, and graduated in four years.

“Families can use the Best High Schools rankings to see how schools compare at the national, state and local level on factors like graduation rates and college readiness. The rankings also provide insight into academic performance among underserved groups,” a news release said.

The data used in this edition is from the 2018-2019 academic school year, and therefore was not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

U.S. News worked with RTI International, a global research firm, to implement the comprehensive rankings methodology.