Palm Springs High 385th in state, top in valley. How do others rank on public school list?

Ramon Salado Romo, Palm Springs Desert Sun
·2 min read

The U.S. News & World Report released its latest annual ranking of 18,000 public high schools across the United States this month, and one Riverside County high school fared particularly well.

The report ranked 17,680 out of nearly 25,000 reviewed public high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Coachella Valley High Schools included in the ranking came from the Desert Sands, Coachella Valley, and Palm Springs Unified School Districts.

How were the schools ranked?

Schools were ranked on six factors: college readiness, state assessment proficiency, state assessment performance, underserved student performance, and graduation rates, each making up a portion of the school's total score.

Palm Springs High School students watch the football game against Granite Hills as storm clouds cast an amber hue on them in Palm Springs, Calif., on Friday, August 18, 2023.
Palm Springs High School students watch the football game against Granite Hills as storm clouds cast an amber hue on them in Palm Springs, Calif., on Friday, August 18, 2023.

What area high schools were among the top in California?

The U.S. News report also included a separate ranking of schools in the state of California. Of 1,536 high schools ranked in the state, Palm Springs High School placed No. 385, the highest of all Coachella Valley public schools, and No. 24 for Riverside metro-area high schools.

One school in Riverside County made it to the top 10 of the California school rankings. Riverside Stem Academy landed at No. 83 in the national rankings, No. 10 in California, and No. 1 for Riverside metro-area high schools.

What other high schools made the top 10 in California?

Here's the full list for top 10 high schools in the state of California:

  1. Oxford Academy, Cypress

  2. Whitney High School, Cerritos

  3. California Academy Of Mathematics And Science, Carson

  4. Dr. T.j. Owens Gilroy Early College Academy, Gilroy

  5. Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy, Wilmington

  6. Preuss School Ucsd, La Jolla

  7. University High School, Fresno

  8. Mission San Jose High School, Fremont

  9. Pacific Collegiate Charter, Santa Cruz

  10. Riverside Stem Academy, Riverside

Palm Desert High varsity volleyball players and fellow students cheer during the JV game against Beaumont in Palm Desert, Calif., on August 24, 2023.
Palm Desert High varsity volleyball players and fellow students cheer during the JV game against Beaumont in Palm Desert, Calif., on August 24, 2023.

How did Coachella Valley high schools compare?

Below is a list of how Coachella Valley schools ranked in comparison to one another in the data released for 2023-24 for the state of California.

Palm Springs High School took up the top spot among public high schools within the three Coachella Valley school districts.

No. 385: Palm Springs High School, Palm Springs

No. 395: Palm Desert High School, Palm Desert

No. 675: La Quinta High School, La Quinta

No. 781: Rancho Mirage High School, Rancho Mirage

No. 790: Cathedral City High School, Cathedral City

No. 816: Shadow Hills High School, Indio

No. 992 West Shores High School, Salton Sea

No. 1,033: Desert Mirage High School, Thermal

No. 1,123: Indio High School, Indio

No. 1,140: Desert Hot Springs High School, Desert Hot Springs

Ramon Salado Romo is a Stanford Rebele Journalism Internship Program participant working for the Desert Sun this summer. He can be reached at rsaladoromo@palmspri.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: What are the top-ranked public high schools in the Palm Springs area?