Kettle Moraine High School of Health Sciences, Cedarburg, Whitefish Bay, New Berlin Eisenhower among best in state, U.S. News says

Alec Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·4 min read
Kettle Moraine High School of Health Sciences was ranked the top high school in the state of Wisconsin by US News.
Kettle Moraine High School of Health Sciences was ranked the top high school in the state of Wisconsin by US News.

U.S. News and World Report has named the Kettle Moraine High School of Health Sciences as the best high school in Wisconsin for the second time.

The school was also listed by U.S. News as the state's top high school in 2022.

The school is a public charter school within the Kettle Moraine School District on the campus of Kettle Moraine High School in Wales. It received an overall score of 98.82.

Lakeview Technology Academy in Pleasant Prairie took second place with an overall score of 98.68 while Cedarburg High School was third in the state with an overall score of 98.51.

Here's how other Milwaukee area schools performed and what to know about the methodology used to calculate the rankings.

What other high schools were among the top 10 high schools in Wisconsin?

Other high schools within the top 10 in the state were:

  • Whitefish Bay High School was fourth with an overall score of 98.42

  • New Berlin Eisenhower Middle/High School was fifth with an overall score of 97.94.

  • Brookfield East High School was sixth with an overall score of 97.59

  • Homestead High School in Mequon was seventh with an overall score of 97.41

  • Arrowhead High School in the town of Merton was eighth with an overall score of 97.07

  • Brookfield Central High School was ninth with an overall score of 97.05

  • Middleton High School was 10th with an overall score of 96.7

What other high schools were in the top 25 in Wisconsin?

Other high schools within the top 25 in the state were:

  • Shorewood High School in 11th with an overall score of 96.52

  • Kohler High School in 12th with an overall score of 96.44

  • Waunakee High School in 13th with an overall score of 96.09

  • Grafton High School in 14th with an overall score of 96.04

  • Reagan College Preparatory High School in Milwaukee Public Schools in 15th with an overall score of 95.7

  • Pewaukee High School in 16th with an overall score of 95.31

  • Hamilton High School in Sussex in 17th with an overall score of 95.03

  • Kettle Moraine Global, a Kettle Moraine School District public charter school also located on Kettle Moraine High School's campus in Wales, in 18th with an overall score of 94.91

  • Wauwatosa East High School in 19th with an overall score of 94.89

  • New Berlin West Middle/High School in 20th with an overall score of 94.85

  • Nicolet High School in Glendale in 21st with an overall score of 94.75

  • Madison West High School in 22nd with an overall score of 94.72

  • Gibraltar High School in Fish Creek in 23rd with an overall score of 94.47

  • Carmen High School of Science and Technology in Milwaukee Public Schools in 24th with an overall score of 94.08

  • Madison Memorial High School in 25th with an overall score of 93.59

What was the US News and World Report's methodology for ranking the high schools?

U.S. News and World Report ranked about 17,680 public high schools out of nearly 25,000 reviewed across all 50 states and the District of Columbia for its 2023-24 Best High Schools list.

Working together with RTI International, a nonprofit social science research firm, U.S. News ranked schools based on six measuring factors:

  • College readiness, 30%

  • College curriculum breadth,10%

  • State assessment proficiency, 20%

  • State assessment performance, 20%

  • Underserved student performance, 10%

  • Graduation rate, 10%

There are some things to keep in mind

While U.S. News evaluates all schools on the same criteria, not all schools are similar in terms of resources or purpose.

For example, a school in a wealthy suburb will have more resources available than a school in a poorer urban setting because of disparities in tax bases, giving wealthy suburban areas an edge.

In addition, some schools focus on different purposes. For example, not all high schools have the resources to offer Advanced Placement classes, or a large number of them, to their students. And not all high schools focus on preparing students for college. Some schools may focus more heavily on art, music, writing and theater. Others may specialize in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Where can U.S. News & World Report's complete list of high school rankings be found?

Visit www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/wisconsin/rankings for more information.

Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee area high schools ranked among best in Wisconsin by US News