05/19/08

Cape High added to U.S. News and World Report list of nation's top schools

Cape Elizabeth High School has been added to U.S. News and World Report's list of best High Schools for 2008, earning a spot in the silver medal category.

This is good news for school officials, who were disappointed that Cape High was not initially on the list, the first-ever published by the magazine earlier this year.

The rankings were developed using a three-step process: student performance on state testing, adjusted for student circumstances; performance of disadvantaged students; and, success in providing college-level course work.

The 100 schools doing the best in this analysis were ranked as gold medal winners, according to the U.S. News and World report Web site. The next 405 schools were awarded silver medals, and an additional 1,086 schools earned bronze. A total of 18,790 public high schools were considered.

"CEHS is now on that list in the silver medal category," said High School Principal Jeff Shedd, in an email to staff.

Other Maine schools earning silver medals are Bangor, Falmouth, Greely and Yarmouth. One school, the Maine School of Science and Math in Limestone, was ranked No. 35 of the top 100 and was awarded a gold medal ranking.

U.S. News and World Report published several additions and adjustments to the list this week. Another Maine school that was added to the list North Haven Community School, North Haven Island, with a bronze medal.

In his email, Shedd said that Cape Elizabeth had not been included in the magazine's initial listing because of missing data about students receiving free and reduced lunch.

Shedd said he has had frequent correspondence with the magazine since the original listing came out. He said he was not sure whether the missing data was error in Cape Elizabeth or an error in Augusta.

Shedd also announced that Cape High had again made the list of the top 1,300 High Schools published by Newsweek. Maine schools Yarmouth, Greenville and Bangor were also ranked by Newsweek as among top schools for 2008.