Staff Writer
Easton Junior-Senior High School and Washburn District High School have been deemed two of the best high schools in the United States. U.S. News & World Report, in collaboration with School Evaluation Services, a K-12 education and data research and analysis business that provides parents with education data on schoolmatters.com, analyzed academic and enrollment data from more than 18,000 public high schools to find the very best across the country.
According to the U.S. News & World Report’s Web site, this was publication’s first ever ranking of America’s Best High Schools.
“Using a formula produced in collaboration with School Evaluation Services, we put high schools in 40 states through a three-step analysis. First, we measured how each school’s students performed on state tests, adjusting for student circumstances,” the Web site said. “We next evaluated how well each school’s disadvantaged students did. Finally, we looked at whether the school was successful in providing college-level coursework.”
The 100 schools that did the best in the analysis earned gold medals. The next 405 schools were awarded silver medals, and an additional 1,086 schools earned bronze.
Both Easton and Washburn high schools received bronze rankings.
“I think it’s a very positive thing any time you have an external group look at your schools through the data and make a judgment about the quality of the education based on results,” said Easton Superintendent Frank Keenan. “I was very proud and excited to see that Easton Junior-Senior High School made the list.”
With the threat of school consolidation looming, Keenan said the honor reinforced something his faculty and staff have known for some time.
“At a time when it appears as though small school districts and small schools seem to be less valued in our state’s culture, it reflects well to have small schools be able to show that they are capable of producing the results that would put them among the top in the state,” he said. “We’ve always felt that we have a very strong school district with a tremendous community commitment, excellent kids and an outstanding staff who work very hard to give our kids the best possible educational experience that we can, and we believe that they get an educational experience here that would compare with an educational experience that they could get anywhere in the state.
“From our perspective,” said Keenan, “it was a positive reinforcement at a time when it was nice to get it. If you ask most people who have spent their careers in education, one of the things they value the most is having somebody say, ‘You’re doing a very good job.’ That’s what we’re seeing with this bronze classification, and it’s nice to be one of the ones U.S. News & World Report feel are doing a good job.”
Edward Buckley, interim superintendent of SAD 45, was equally pleased with the acknowledgment.
“It recognizes the fact that we deal with a lot of economically disadvantaged students, which everyone in the United States is struggling with,” he said. “We don’t get much credit for this from the state of Maine, but when we look at it nationally, people are saying, ‘You’re doing a great job with these kids.’”
Buckley noted that pretty much all the bronze medal winners were small schools throughout the state.
“I think that’s because all the small schools in Maine are dealing with anywhere from 40 to 75 percent of students participating in the free and reduced lunch program,” he said. “We’re close to 50 percent, and that’s what makes us stand out … the fact that we’re doing a good job with those kids.”
Recognizing that Washburn typically does well with its MEA testing, Buckley said the secret’s out that Washburn is a quality school.
“They know this in the town of Washburn, but no one else seems to know it,” he said, “so it’s nice to get someone else to recognize the fact that we are doing very, very well academically.
“While there’s no physical award associated with this acknowledgement, it’s a pat on the back,” said Buckley. “That’s worth more than a plaque on the wall sometimes. We’re very happy.”
