Dalton High School has been recognized for the fifth year by U. S. News and World Report as a Best High School. Released today, the ranking gives Dalton High a silver medal and places the school as the 40th best high school in Georgia according to the annual U.S. News & World Report study.
Dalton High continued to be the highest ranked high school northwest of metro Atlanta and the only school locally to make the top 50.

“There isn’t anything I like more than to see our students and staff at Dalton High recognized for their hard work and achievement,” said Steve Bartoo, principal at Dalton High.

“Everyone who works in our school is committed to helping every student achieve at their highest level so they can be successful as they enter college, technical school, the military or the workplace after graduation. I’m so proud of all of our students and staff, and appreciate this validation of what we already knew—Dalton High is one of the best schools in Georgia and the nation.”

U. S. News collected data on more than 19,400 public high schools from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Schools were awarded gold, silver or bronze medals based on their performance on state assessments and how well they prepare students for college.
Dalton High ranked 1471st out of 19,400 high schools in the nation placing them in the top 8 percent nationally.

“I want to commend the students and staff at Dalton High School for receiving this recognition for the fifth year,” said Dr. Jim Hawkins, superintendent of Dalton Public Schools. “It comes as no surprise that Dalton High is again recognized as a best high school. Our community can take pride in having one of the best high schools in Georgia. The rigor and excellence of the academic program and the long-standing traditions upheld at Dalton High School make it a great choice for any student.

U. S. News works with the American Institute for Research in Washington, D.C., to evaluate schools based on the key principles that a great high school must serve all students well, not just those who are college bound, and that it must be able to produce measureable academic outcomes to show the school is successfully educating its student body across a range of performance indicators.

Schools are evaluated to determine if students are performing better than statistically expected for the average student in the state in reading and math on each state’s high school proficiency tests. Then the researchers factored in the percentage of economically disadvantaged students enrolled at the school to identify the schools that are performing better than statistical expectations. Next, those schools who made it past the first step are evaluated on whether the school’s least-advantaged students—black, Hispanic, and low-income—are performing better than average for similar students in the state. Schools who make it through those steps become eligible to be judged nationally on college-readiness performance indicators using Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test data as the benchmarks for success.

For more information on Dalton High’s rankings, go to http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/georgia/districts/dalton-city/dalton-high-school-5827

For more information on the rankings of the best Georgia high Schools, go to http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/georgia

For more information on the rankings of the best high schools in the nation, go to http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/national-rankings