In 2008, Decatur High School ranked as the 574th “Top High School” in the country according to Newsweek.  Last year, DHS ranked two spots higher at 572.  However, when this year’s rankings came out, Decatur High was nowhere to be found, prompting Todd to write in…

This may be old news, but Newsweek came out with its list of top High Schools, and the AJC ran the list. You’ll notice that Decatur High is not among them.

Now, as someone who moved here in part because of the vaunted CSD system, I was surprised. Are they really seen as being great only when compared to DeKalb County and City of Atlanta? Should I be spending my tax dollars elsewhere (and probably fewer of them) to ensure that my children are getting the best education bang for their buck? Granted, the vibe at Marietta High, and the political and social philosophies of the parents of those children, may not mesh well with my viewpoints, and thus living in Decatur is the better option on that count. I wonder what others in the community think.

I relayed Todd’s question to CSD’s Bruce Roaden and after a bit of digging, he clarified the situation…

Apparently, we were initially left off the list last year as well. Newsweek provides an opportunity to submit data to correct their information. We take the opportunity to submit a form with the necessary data and then we are included. Decatur High will be again submitting the appropriate figures and we will again be included in the rankings.

Newsweek’s “Best High Schools” FAQ even addresses this issue, explaining that there is no national database for “the number of AP, IB, and Cambridge tests and number of graduates for each public high school,” so they had to build their own.  Why they’d miss a school for a second straight year, after adding it to the mix last year is beyond me.

The FAQ also notes, somewhat amusingly, that you shouldn’t worry too much about your High School’s rank.