Baltimore County’s public high schools placed well in the annual U.S. News & World Report’s Best High Schools list released on Tuesday, with three placing in Maryland’s top 10 high schools and five placing within the top 50.
Eastern Technical High School, once again ranked first in Maryland, is ranked 46th nationally.
In addition to Eastern, Western School of Technology, George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, and Hereford and Towson high schools ranked among the top 50 in Maryland.
“While we know that our schools are far more than their test scores or rankings, we greatly appreciate that so many of our high schools continue to be recognized at the state and national level,” said BCPS
Superintendent Dr. Bill Heiser.
“We are so proud of the achievements of the teachers, staff, administrators, and students at these honored high schools, and, as we begin this new school year, we are intensifying our efforts to advance excellence together at every school, for every student.”
The BCPS high schools that received rankings on the U.S. News & World Report list are:
• Eastern Technical High – #1 in Maryland (unchanged from 2025)
• Western Tech – #8 in Maryland (#5 in Maryland in 2025)
• Carver Center – #10 in Maryland (#24 in Maryland in 2025)
• Hereford High – #25 in Maryland (#26 in Maryland in 2025)
• Towson High – #32 in Maryland, (#48 in Maryland in 2025) • Dulaney High – #56 in Maryland (#36 in Maryland in 2025)
• Catonsville High – #65 in Maryland (#61 in Maryland in 2025)
• Pikesville High – #82 in Maryland (#78 in Maryland in 2025)
• Perry Hall High – #106 in Maryland (#144 in Maryland in 2025)
• Franklin High – #129 in Maryland (#113 in Maryland in 2025)
• Loch Raven High – #146 in Maryland (#137 in Maryland in 2025)
• Patapsco High and Center for the Arts – #150 in Maryland (#143 in Maryland in 2025)
• Sparrows Point High – #155 in Maryland (#158 in Maryland in 2025)
• Overlea High – #162 in Maryland (#180 in Maryland in 2025)
• Chesapeake High – #164 in Maryland (#170 in Maryland in 2025)
• Kenwood High – #166 in Maryland (#167 in Maryland in 2025)
• Milford Mill Academy – #169 in Maryland (#175 in Maryland in 2025)
• Woodlawn High – #173 in Maryland (unranked in 2025)
• Parkville High and Center for Math/Science – #174 in Maryland (unranked in 2025)
• New Town High – #178 in Maryland (#169 in Maryland in 2025)
• Lansdowne High and Academy of Finance – #181 in Maryland (unranked in 2025)
• Randallstown High – #185 in Maryland (#155 in Maryland in 2025)
The U.S. News rankings include data on more than 27,000 public high schools in 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Rankings are based on college readiness (counting for 30 percent of the U.S.
News score), state assessment proficiency (20 percent), state assessment performance (20 percent), underserved student performance (10 percent), college curriculum breadth (10 percent), and graduation rate (10 percent).
Factored into the rankings were participation and achievement in Advanced Placement
and International Baccalaureate courses.
According to the U.S. News website,
“A great high school educates all of its students from different social and economic backgrounds, exposing them to challenging coursework on the path to graduation.
The highest ranked U.S. public schools in U.S. News & World Report’s 2026-2027 Best High Schools rankings are those whose students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math, reading, and science state assessments, earning qualifying scores on an array of college-level exams, and graduated in high proportions.”