Uplift Education High Schools Receive National Recognition as Some of the Top High Schools in the Nation for 2020

    DALLAS, TX, May 06, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Uplift Education, the largest group of free public charter schools in North Texas, was recently recognized by the annual Jay Mathews Challenge Index and U.S. News and World Report as having some of the top high schools in the nation. Both lists recognize high schools based on a variety of factors, including effective college preparation and successful college completion.

The Jay Mathews Challenge Index list, which has been rating American schools since 1998, gave Uplift North Hills Prep in Irving, Uplift Summit International Prep in Arlington, and Uplift Williams Prep in Dallas very high ratings given their emphasis on student enrollment in challenging, college-level courses and tests, such as Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB). The Challenge Index rates schools by the ratio of the number of AP or IB exams taken by all students to the number of seniors graduating.

Uplift North Hills, Uplift Summit International, and Uplift Williams were ranked among the top 1% of high schools in the nation, at 40th, 134th, and 198th respectively.

The new 2020 list was limited to just the top 300 schools, because of the difficulty of collecting data this year. "The Uplift schools have been ranking high on the list for many years," said Jay Mathews of the Challenge Index. "They have a rare respect for the importance of challenging every student, including average students, so they have a chance to experience difficult college-level classes and very long final exams before they ever get to college."

U.S. News and World Report has also released its highly regarded list of America's Best High Schools for 2020, and all of Uplift's eligible high schools received national recognition. All eligible high schools are ranked in the top 25% of high schools in the greater DFW area, and Uplift schools took 3 of the top 25 spots.

Schools are ranked on their performance on state-required tests, graduation rates, and how well they prepare students for college. Uplift high schools ranked among the top 12% in the nation, with Uplift North Hills Prep, Uplift Summit International Prep, and Uplift Williams Prep ranked 166th, 318th, and 667th respectively, placing them among the top 3% of high schools in the nation. Uplift Infinity Prep in Irving and Uplift Mighty Prep in Fort Worth, both celebrated their first graduating classes in 2018 and were eligible for the first time to be ranked by U.S. News and World Report. Both high schools debuted among the top 11%.

Uplift Education CEO, Yasmin Bhatia stated, "Increasing student academic achievement has always been our top priority. Now it is clear by objective measures that we are elevating college and career aspirations for all students and ensuring every student has the tools to not only meet but exceed those aspirations. On behalf of Uplift Education, I congratulate our staff, scholars, and parents for a job well done! Achieving such high rankings is certainly an accomplishment worth celebrating."

Traditionally, more than 80% of Uplift high school students sit for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program assessment and have the opportunity to earn up to 24 college credit hours. Uplift provides every student with access to a more rigorous curriculum and a more robust college preparation program.

Jay Mathews Challenge Index is the only list that compares private and public schools. It ranks high schools by a simple ratio: the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or Cambridge tests given at a school each year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated that year.

U.S. News and World Report ranks schools across the nation whose students have demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math and reading state assessments, passed a diverse array of college-level exams and graduated in high proportions.

Uplift Education
Uplift Education is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to changing the lives of teachers, families, and, most importantly, students. With a network of 43 college preparatory, public charter schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Uplift offers students of any background the powerful chance to study within a multidisciplinary curriculum and prepare for the college or career they deserve. Uplift is the largest International Baccalaureate (IB) district in Texas and the #2 IB district in the nation because of the number of holistic extracurricular and educational programs. The incredible educators in the Uplift network guide and teach nearly 20,000 students in Pre-K- 12th grades, with the majority being low-income and minority students who will be the first in their family to attend college. For more information Uplift's mission and its blind lottery selection system, visit uplifteducation.org or facebook.com/uplifteducation.

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