Richmond-area schools lauded by U.S. News

STAFF REPORTS
Published: December 9, 2008

Several Richmond-area high schools made U.S. News & World Report's annual ranking of best American high schools, which was topped by a school in Fairfax County.

Richmond's Community High School, Henrico County's Deep Run and Godwin high schools and Chesterfield County's Midlothian High School were among 504 nationally to win silver medals.

Richmond's Open High School and West Point High School in King William County were among 1,321 national bronze-medal winners.

Forty-five schools in Virginia earned at least a bronze medal this year.

Four state schools, all in Fairfax County, won gold medals and a place in the national top 100 list. One of those, the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, was ranked the No. 1 school in the country.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine released a statement yesterday congratulating the top school. "Thomas Jefferson High School has a well-deserved reputation for excellence and innovation," he said. "This latest honor reflects the continued commitment to excellence shared by educators at Thomas Jefferson High and in Fairfax County and the vision of the Commonwealth in establishing a system of regional Governor's Schools for exceptional students."

Kaine noted that Thomas Jefferson High, along with the Maggie L. Walker Governor's School for Government and International Studies in Richmond, was named earlier in the year as one of Newsweek magazine's 18 "public elite" high schools.

School Evaluation Services, a research business from Standard & Poor's, conducted the annual rankings, analyzing more than 21,000 public high schools. Schools were rated on state test scores, the performance of disadvantaged students and the availability of college coursework.