Five MCPS High Schools Make the Top 500 in the National Rankings

Eight Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) have been recognized as some of the top public high schools in Maryland, according to the latest rankings released by U.S. News & World Report. The U.S. News rankings review nearly 25,000 public high schools in 50 states and the District of Columbia. In addition to traditional high schools, the rankings encompass charter; magnet; and science, technology, engineering and math-focused schools. 

Walt Whitman High School earned second place in the state, just behind Baltimore's Eastern Technical High School. Poolesville High School earned third place in Maryland. Thomas S. Wootton High School, Winston Churchill High School and Richard Montgomery High School were in the top six schools in Maryland. These results show an improvement over the 2023 rankings, which had 8 MCPS high schools in the top 30 in Maryland.

The rankings are based on a variety of metrics, including college readiness, state assessment performance, underserved student performance, and graduation rate. 

The complete list of Montgomery County schools and their rankings in the state is as follows:

• Walt Whitman High School (#2 in the state, #139 nationally)
• Poolesville High School (#3 in the state, #172 nationally)
• Thomas S. Wootton High School (#4 in the state, #196 nationally)
• Winston Churchill High School (#5 in the state, #295 nationally)
• Richard Montgomery High School (#6 in the state, #364 nationally)
• Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (#10 in the state, #590 nationally)
• Walter Johnson High School (#15 in the state, #855 nationally)
• Northwest High School (#20 in the state, #1,059 nationally)

The remaining MCPS High Schools ranked as follows in Maryland

• #23: Clarksburg High School
• #29: Wheaton High School
• #31: Montgomery Blair High School
• #33: Springbrook High School
• #37: Albert Einstein High School
• #43: Sherwood High School
• #47: Damascus High School
• #48: Col. Zadok Magruder High School
• #51: Rockville High School
• #57: Paint Branch High School
• #69: Quince Orchard High School
• #74: James Hubert Blake High School
• #78: Northwood High School
• #83: Seneca Valley High School
• #93: John F. Kennedy High School
• #110: Gaithersburg High School
• #146: Watkins Mill High School