Why High Schools Move in and out of the Rankings

Having been in private, Catholic educaiton for more than 30 years in Texas, I am well acquainted with most of the high flying schools in the state. Yet, again and again, I come back to that old truism concerning education in America: Demographics is Destiny. By this I mean that when the children of wealth congregate in a school, it is almost inevitable that the synergy provided there will yield great scores. Overcoming the iron-clad rule of "Demographics is Destiny" CAN be done, but only with incredible amounts of gifted teachers, motivated students, and money.

Now, if you asked the far simpler question: Where do the 'Best and Brightest' students in America currently study, the answer is almost universal: Private education. I live in the Dallas Metroplex area and to find the most excellent students, you would need to visit only 5 schools: St. Mark's (all boys); The Hockaday School (all girls); Cistercian Prep School (all boys/monks are faculty); Ursuline Academy (all girls); and finally, The Greenhill School (coed)

These five institutions pretty much have cornered the market on high-end education, and their graduates so far outshine their public school counterparts when it comes time for college applications.

As a product of Texas public education myself, I have lived with the scars of that system. If I had children, I would never have condemned them to public education if an alternative were available.

Michael Schweers of TX 12:43AM December 28, 2009