Altavista High School earns ranking by U.S. News & World Report

Altavista High School has been ranked among the best high schools in the country, according to rankings compiled by U.S. News & World Report.

Naturally, principal Clayton Stanley was delighted to hear the news, albeit a little surprised. When reached by phone Monday, Stanley had not yet received word from U.S. News about his school’s placement on the list.

After checking the publication’s Web site, he saw his small school of 816 students, nestled in the southern end of Campbell County, was indeed on the “bronze medal list.”

“You work hard every day,” Stanley said. “It’s just a breath of fresh air because everyone works very hard. It’s nice to be recognized.”

Altavista was the only local school to receive recognition in the rankings that divide schools into four different lists — gold, silver, bronze and honorable mention. Schools on the bronze list met two of U.S. News’ key performance indicators. The indicators analyze reading and math results. Schools where all students perform better than statistically expected meet the first indicator. The second indicator is met when economically disadvantaged students achieve better than statistically expected.

U.S. News uses a formula based on reading and math test scores, school demographics and performance on AP and IB exams as a means of evaluating schools. Data from 21,069 public high schools in 48 states were used to create the rankings, but only 1,942 schools earned placement on the list.

The U.S. News rankings, only in their second year, are different from the high school rankings done by Newsweek that have historically included Lynchburg’s two high schools.

Stanley said the reality of the ranking was starting to sink in Monday afternoon and he couldn’t be prouder of his students and staff. He attributed his school’s success to the bond between students and teachers.

“I think our faculty and our students have a relationship that’s friendly, that’s caring. I really think everyone here knows we’re on the same side,” he said, later adding, “When I talk about relationships, we know every student in this building very well. Luckily we’re a small school and we can do that.”

Stanley said there were no immediate plans for the school community to celebrate, but he did call his wife and ask her to pick up a copy of the magazine. The U.S. News Web site rankings were announced online Friday, but the rankings issue hit newsstands Monday.

Campbell County Schools Superintendent George Nolley, who subscribes to the magazine, was also excited about the achievement and said he’ll save his copy of the issue for Stanley.

“Oh we’re proud of them,” he said. “ They do a super job.”