The Maine School of Science and Mathematics was ranked the 10th-best high school in the nation for science, math, engineering and technology (STEM) and 19th-best overall high school, according to the annual U.S. News & World Report rankings released Tuesday.
Last year the Limestone school was not included in the rankings for technical reasons. The rankings are based on graduation rates for the schools and on student performance on state proficiency tests and Advanced Placement exams. This year, International Baccalaureate data were not available and were not a factor.
The only other Maine high school ranked in the top 500 schools in the nation was Falmouth, at 328th.
Some Maine schools regularly on the list in past years were not ranked, including Yarmouth High School, Cape Elizabeth High School and Brewer High School.
As a state, Maine ranked 24th in the nation, after being ranked seventh and ninth the last two years, but the methodology has changed to, among other factors, eliminate tie-breaker rankings and require a higher graduation rate.
According to the magazine, the top 10 schools in Maine and their national rank are: Maine School of Science and Mathematics, Limestone (19); Falmouth High School, Falmouth (328); Wells High School, Wells-Ogunquit CSD (801); Greely High School, Cumberland, RSU 51/MSAD 51 (963); Freeport High School, RSU5 (1,256); Scarborough High School, Scarborough (1,284); York High School, York (1,433); Casco Bay High School, Portland (2,012); Gorham High School, Gorham Public Schools (2,072); Boothbay Region High School, Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor CSD (2,216).
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