These Tampa Bay High Schools Are Among 2022's Best: U.S. News

D'Ann Lawrence White
·6 min read

FLORIDA — Plant High School in Tampa is the top-ranked Tampa Bay high school in Florida, according to a new national ranking by U.S. News and World Report.

This year’s list of best high schools evaluated more than 17,800 schools nationwide, including more than 200 schools in the Sunshine State.

The 2022 ranking of best high schools is intended to show how well the nation's public schools serve all students, regardless of achievement level, by teaching them basic skills and preparing them for college-level work, according to a news release from U.S. News.

Families can also use the rankings to see how schools compare at the national, state and local levels on factors such as graduation rates and college readiness.

Related: These Florida High Schools Are Among 2022's Best: U.S. News

While thousands of schools were evaluated, these Tampa Bay schools were ranked among the top schools in Tampa Bay, according to U.S. News:

1 Plant High School, Hillsborough County, ranked No. 39 in the state
2 Steinbrenner High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 41 in the state
3 Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High School, Hillsborough, ranked 45 in the state
4 Newsome High School, Hillsborough, ranked 48
5 Palm Harbor University High School, Pinellas County, ranked No. 56
6 Osceola Fundamental High School, Pinellas County, ranked No. 75
7 Robinson High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 78
8 St. Petersburg Collegiate High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 81
9 Sickles High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 83
10 Land O' Lakes High School, Pasco County, , ranked No. 85
11 East Lake High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 110
12 Wiregrass Ranch High School, Pasco, ranked No. 114
13 Tampa Bay Tech High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 124
14 James W. Mitchell High School, Pasco, ranked No. 129
15 Sunlake High School, Pasco, ranked No. 132
16 Bell Creek Academy High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 133
17 Strawberry Crest High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 139
18 Middleton High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 143
19 Hillsborough Virtual School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 153
20 Riverview High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 175
21 Alonso High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 177
22 Bloomingdale High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 180
23 King High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 187
24 Largo High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 188
25 Lakewood High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 189
26 Hillsborough High School, Hillsborough, ranked Nov. 195
27 Tarpon Springs High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 199
28 St. Petersburg High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 209
29 Gaither High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 214
30 Frank W. Springstead High School, Hernando County, ranked No. 224
31 River Ridge High School, Pasco, ranked No. 237
32 Wharton High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 242
33 Dayspring Academy, Pasco, ranked No. 248
34 Wesley Chapel High School, Pasco, ranked No. 250
35 Boca Ciega High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 252
36 Countryside High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 255
37 Durant High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 260
38 Cypress Creek High School, Pasco, ranked No. 261
39 Jefferson High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 265
40 Plant City High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 267
41 Blake High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 276
42 Leto High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 278
43 Gibbs High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 280
44 Northeast High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 293
45 Wendell Krinn Technical High School, Pasco, ranked No. 313
46 Freedom High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 334
47 Pinellas Park High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 343
48 Pasco Eschool-Virtual Franchise, Pasco, ranked No. 345
49 Nature Coast Technical High School, Hernando, ranked No.351
50 Armwood High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 371
51 Seminole High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 372
52 Lennard High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 373
53 East Bay High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 374
54 Gulf High School, Pasco, ranked No. 379
55 Zephyrhills High School, Pasco, ranked No.398
56 Dunedin High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 399
57 Brandon High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 405
58 Pinellas Virtual Franchise, Pinellas, ranked No. 418
59 Hudson High School, Pasco, ranked No. 420
60 Dixie M. Hollins High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 423
61 Clearwater High School, Pinellas, ranked No. 444
62 Anclote High School, Pasco, ranked No. 445
63 Chamberlain High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 447
64 Central High School, Hernando, ranked No. 463
65 Spoto High School, Hillsborough, ranked No. 467
66 Weeki Wachee High School, Hernando, ranked No. 468
67 Hernando High School, Hernando, ranked No. 475
68 Fivay High School, Pasco, ranked No. 487
69 Pasco High School, Pasco, ranked No. 504
70 Bayside High School, Pinellas
71 Enterprise Charter High School, Pinellas
72 Pinellas Gulf Coast Academy, Pinellas
73 Pivot Charter School, Hillsborough
74 Seminole Heights Charter High School, Hillsborough
75 South County Career Center, Hillsborough

This year, the top 15 schools nationally are in 14 different states.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, was ranked No. 1 in the nation, as well as among magnet schools.

Here are the top 10 schools in this year's national Best High Schools ranking:

  1. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology - Alexandria, Virginia

  2. Academic Magnet High School - North Charleston, South Carolina

  3. Signature School - Evansville, Indiana

  4. School for Advanced Studies - Miami, Florida

  5. Payton College Preparatory High School - Chicago, Illinois

  6. The Davidson Academy of Nevada - Reno, Nevada

  7. Central Magnet School - Murfreesboro, Tennessee

  8. The School for the Talented and Gifted - Dallas, Texas

  9. Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology - Lawrenceville, Georgia

  10. Julia R. Masterman Secondary School - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

This year's schools were ranked on six measures: college readiness, college curriculum breadth, state assessment performance, state assessment proficiency, reading and math proficiency, reading and math performance, underserved student performance and graduation rates.

The data used in this year's ranking is from the 2019-20 academic school year. U.S. News adjusted its calculation of these measures to account for the impact COVID-19 had on schools in the 2019-20 school year.

Since most states closed schools for in-person instruction starting in March 2020 — typically just before most states conduct assessments — the U.S. Department of Education granted waivers allowing all states to forgo state testing for the 2019-20 school year.

To account for this, U.S. News relied on past assessment data from the three prior ranking years. Researchers also incorporated state science assessment data from the 2018-19 school year.

Read more about the Best High Schools methodology.

In addition to the national rankings, U.S. News also published rankings at the state, metro area and school district levels. Only metro areas and school districts with three or more high schools were included in these subrankings.

These Tampa Bay High Schools Are Among 2022's Best: U.S. News originally appeared on the Tampa Patch