The Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts has been named to The Washington Post’s list of top-performing schools with elite students.
Jay Mathews, an education columnist and blogger for the Post, created the Challenge Index, a measure of how effectively a school challenges average students and prepares them for college. The first “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” list was published in 1998 and included only Washington, D.C.-area schools. Since then, the Post has expanded its rankings to include high schools across the United States.
Mathews also curates a list often referred to as the “Public Elites.” The list recognizes schools for their exceptional quality and remarkably talented students. The schools on this list are excluded from the Challenge Index list because “their admission rules and standardized test scores indicate they have few or no average students,” Mathews said in the introduction to the Public Elites list.
This is ASMSA’s first appearance on the Public Elites list. It has often been ranked highly in the Challenge Index list. Corey Alderdice, ASMSA’s director, was pleased that the Post recognized the institution’s gains in student outcomes, particularly a three-point increase in average ACT scores over the past three years.
“Being recognized among the nation’s leading high schools is a true honor for ASMSA’s community of learning,” Alderdice said. “Reaching this milestone is a result of a commitment to excellence by our students, faculty and staff. It demonstrates that Arkansas students can stand shoulder to shoulder with peers from across the nation.”
While the name “Public Elites” can at times suggest exclusivity, Alderdice stressed that ASMSA is an elite opportunity available to students from across Arkansas.
"What stands out to me is that ASMSA has seen continued growth and success while serving a population of students with a large percentage of rural, low-income, first-generation college and other diverse learners,” he said.
This year’s list of Public Elites has 26 schools, including six other residential science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) schools that ASMSA considers peer institutions. Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Sciences in Kentucky, Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, Louisiana School for Math, Sciences and the Arts, North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics and the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics are on the list.
Others on the list such as Bronx High School of Science in New York, Bergen County Academies in New Jersey, Stuyvesant High School in New York and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia are members of the National Consortium for Specialized STEM Schools, in which ASMSA also participates.
Being included on a list of prestigious institutions is evidence of the choice ASMSA’s students make to take on a rigorous academic challenge and succeed.
“Among these schools are national leaders in curriculum, research and innovation. They are each shining examples of what public education can be. Excellence is a matter of both choice and opportunity, and we are thrilled that Arkansas' talented students embrace this opportunity," Alderdice said.