14 Charlotte-area high schools named among state’s 50 best in 2024. See full rankings.
A Gaston County high school maintained its spot as the best in the Charlotte area and one other ranked among the top 500 in the nation, according to U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 High School Ranking released Tuesday.
Those schools included Highland School of Technology, which ranked 10th in the state, as well as Providence High School, which ranked 12th in North Carolina. The U.S. News and World Report 2024 High School Ranking reflects the schools across the country with the best state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates and performance by students from underserved communities.
The Highland School ranked 334th nationally, according to the rankings released early Tuesday. Providence High School rose five spots in the local ranking to overtake Ardrey Kell High School as the second best in the Charlotte area and 500th best in the country.
Highland School of Technology opened in 2000 as the first magnet school in the Gaston County school district, with the goal of “providing each student with a rigorous and relevant academic, character and technological education,” according to the school’s website. U.S. News ranked it the 66th best magnet school in the country in 2024.
Providence and Ardrey Kell are both public high schools in south Charlotte operated by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Providence is located along Pineville-Matthews Road near the town of Matthews. Ardrey Kell is located on a road that bears the school’s name near the Ballantyne community
Five total schools in Mecklenburg or adjacent counties ranked among the top 25 schools in North Carolina, while 14 made the top 50 in the state.
How did North Carolina stack up?
North Carolina was 29th in the country for the proportion of its high schools that ranked among the country’s best — slipping from 25th in 2023.
U.S. News and World Report ranks the nation’s public, charter and magnet high schools every year based on students’ scores on state assessments, participation and achievement in advanced placement and other college-level courses, performance of underserved students and graduation rates. This year marks the 17th ranking. It reviewed more than 25,000 schools in the country.
“The 2024 Best High Schools rankings offer a starting point for parents to understand a school’s academic performance, whether it’s a prospective school or one that their child is already attending,” LaMont Jones, managing editor of education at U.S. News, said in a news release. “Accessible data on our high schools can empower families across the country as they navigate today’s educational environment and plan for the future.”
Twelve NC schools ranked among the top 500 in the country. Guilford County Schools and Wake County Schools were the only districts in the state to have multiple schools in the top 500.
Local schools in the top 50 in NC include:
▪ Highland School of Technology (Gastonia), No. 10
▪ Providence High School (Charlotte), No. 12
▪ Ardrey Kell High School (Charlotte), No. 13
▪ Lake Norman Charter (Huntersville), No. 15
▪ Marvin Ridge High School (Waxhaw), No. 19
▪ Pine Lake Preparatory (Mooresville), No. 21
▪ Central Academy of Technology and Arts (Monroe), No. 26
▪ Community School of Davidson (Davidson), No. 29
▪ Weddington High School (Weddington), No. 31
▪ Charlotte Engineering Early College (Charlotte), No. 32
▪ Williams Secondary Montessori (Charlotte), No. 38
▪ William Amos Hough High School (Cornelius), No. 39
▪ Northwest School of the Arts (Charlotte), No. 46
▪ Cox Mill High School (Concord), No. 50
Take a look at the full report here.
