Elizabeth Public Schools Press Release

U.S. News Ranks EHS – FJC, Hamilton Among Top 1,000 High Schools Nationally

Elizabeth, N.J., May 21, 2020 – Elizabeth High School – Frank J. Cicarell Academy (EHS – FJC) and Alexander Hamilton Preparatory Academy ranked among the top high schools from throughout the United States as part of the 2020 U.S. News & World Report Best High Schools rankings.

In coordination with North Carolina-based RTI International, a global nonprofit social science research firm, U.S. News ranked approximately 17,790 public high schools out of more than 24,000 reviewed based on detailed statistical information primarily from the 2017-2018 school year. This is the count of public high schools that had a 12th grade enrollment of 15 or greater, or otherwise had sufficient enrollment in other high school grades during the 2017-2018 school year to be analyzed.

EHS – FJC (No. 257) and Hamilton Preparatory Academy (No. 914) both ranked among the top 1,000 high schools nationally.

“These rankings are a reflection of Elizabeth High School – Frank J. Cicarell Academy and Alexander Hamilton Preparatory Academy’s commitment to meeting our district goals of college preparedness, career readiness, and on-time graduation,” said Elizabeth Public Schools Superintendent Olga Hugelmeyer.

The data used to produce the U.S. News Best High Schools rankings came entirely from the U.S. Department of Education’s website The Common Core of Data, statewide math and reading level assessment tests and high school graduation rates, The College Board for Advanced Placement (AP) examination data, and International Baccalaureate (IB) for IB examination data.

The methodology used to determine the overall national rankings consisted of combining six indicators of varying weights. Those indicators include a College Readiness Index that measures the proportion of a school's 12th graders that took and passed AP or IB exams, a College Curriculum Breadth Index that examines the percentage of 12th graders who passed multiple AP or IB exams, the Math and Reading Proficiency indicator that measures student performance on math and reading assessments, the Math and Reading Performance indicator that compares the total assessment scores in math and reading with what U.S. News predicted for a school with its demographic characteristics in its state, the Underserved Student Performance indicator that measures the scores of a school’s black, Hispanic, and low-income students on state assessments compared with the average scores for non-underserved students among schools in the same state, and graduation rate which measures the proportion of students who entered ninth grade in the 2013-2014 academic year and graduated four years later by 2017-2018.

In addition to both ranking among the top 1,000 nationally, EHS – FJC (No. 12) and Hamilton Preparatory Academy (No. 39) both ranked among the top 40 high schools in . Elizabeth Public Schools was one of four non-vocational school districts to have multiple high schools ranked in the top 40 in New Jersey, joining Jersey City Public Schools, West Windsor- Plainsboro Regional School District, and Northern Valley Regional High School District.

“Congratulations to the students and staff members at Elizabeth High School – Frank J. Cicarell Academy and Alexander Hamilton Preparatory Academy for their outstanding efforts and commitment that has led to their selections by U.S. News as two of the top 1,000 high schools in the nation and two of the top 40 in New Jersey,” said Elizabeth Board of Education President Diane Barbosa.

“They should be very proud of the hard work and determination they have put into developing learning communities that uphold the standard of excellence through elite academic performance.”

The 2020 U.S. News and World Report Best High Schools Rankings of New Jersey high schools can be found at https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/new-jersey.

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For further information on Elizabeth Public Schools, please visit www.epsnj.org.