Brown County High School has jumped 16 places up the list of the best high schools in Indiana according to U.S. News and World Report, cracking the top 30.
BCHS was ranked 28th out of 136 schools based on academic performance last school year. The ranking takes into account end-of-course assessment scores, college readiness and Advanced Placement test participation and performance.
This also is the fourth time the school has received a national silver award from the publication. It received a bronze medal in 2012.
Brown County was one 35 high schools to receive a silver rating in Indiana. Only five schools received gold.
“Even though we’re excited and happy, we’re still not satisfied. We want to be a gold school,” Principal Shane Killinger said.
Nationally, BCHS was ranked 2,197th out of 6,041 public high schools.
Among schools in neighboring counties, only Whiteland and Martinsville high schools were ranked higher than Brown County, at 21st and 26th, respectively.
Signature School, a charter school in Evansville, was No. 1 in the state.
U.S. News calculated the English proficiency of BCHS students at 79 percent for 2015-16 — up 14 per- cent over last year — and mathematics proficiency at 95 percent — up 24 percent over the 2014-15 school year.
The publication reported BCHS’s graduation rate as 90 percent. However, in January, the Indiana Department of Education reported it was 99.3 percent for last year, which was the school’s highest in at least 10 years.
Despite the graduation rate being reported lower, Killinger credits an increasing number of students taking and passing AP exams for the jump from 44th to 28th best high school in Indiana.
At the end of this year, 14 different AP exams will be administered.
“We have a lot of offerings for a school our size,” Killinger said.
He said the school will continue to focus on getting more students to take and pass AP exams. For 2015-16, 35 percent of students took them and 67 percent of those passed.
Because of advanced teacher licensure requirements, the school has begun to offer more AP classes instead of ACP classes, which give students credits for Indiana University if they complete the course with a certain grade, Killinger said.
With AP classes, students take the class and must get a score of 3 or higher on the exam in order to get college credit.
On the other end of the spectrum, the school also is working to help kids who are struggling to pass the ISTEP exam, which is required to graduate. Two remediation classes will be offered next fall. In addition, BCHS has started a graduation and career coaching program to help up to 20 freshmen and sophomores who are at risk for dropping out
“At this time of year, when things are getting really busy and hectic, it’s nice to get something like this just to reaffirm that the students and the teachers are working hard,” Killinger said.
“We know that the teachers and students are doing a good job, but it’s nice to know that other people are seeing it as well.”
