Two of Coweta County’s high schools placed in the top 10 percent of “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” in a report by the Washington Post.
East Coweta and Northgate high schools were among 2,149 public and private high schools nationwide to make the list, placing them in the top 10 percent of the 22,000 high schools surveyed, said Coweta County School System spokesman Dean Jackson.
Northgate ranked 1,901 on this year’s list, and East Coweta ranked 2,089, placing the schools in the top 9 percent (Northgate) and 10 percent (East Coweta) among high schools nationally. Only 117 Georgia high schools made the list this year. This was Northgate’s second year in a row to make the list, Jackson said.
Jackson said the list ranks schools by the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at a school during the 2013 school year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated in the spring of that year. Successful completion of the difficult exams typically earns students college-level credit, he said.
“We have worked really hard to create an atmosphere where kids and teachers feel comfortable challenging themselves and taking risks,” said East Coweta Principal Evan Horton, noting that monthly mentoring programs for all students are held at the school. “A large part of that program is centered around discussing the benefits of rigorous coursework. We have also spent a great deal of time trying to develop meaningful relationships with our students and to provide support to them as they challenge themselves.”
Northgate Principal Bill Harrison said the school has developed an ethic of encouraging their students to challenge themselves academically.
“I give every bit of that credit to the teachers here,” he said. “They prepare students for academically challenging work, prepare them for high-level and college-level work and encourage them to apply themselves in advanced classes.”
A complete list of this year’s “Most Challenging High Schools” can be found at apps.washingtonpost.com/local/highschoolchallenge/
