U.S. News & World Report places 19 LI schools among best in country
In Jericho, led by Superintendent Hank Grishman, the high school ranked 127th nationwide, up from 134th the previous year. Credit: Howard Schnapp
Nineteen public high schools on Long Island rank among the top 1,000 nationwide in new academic listings, but many officials said they're not immune from pressures triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2020 ratings, released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report, include more than 17,700 traditional high schools, charter schools and magnet schools from across the country. Schools within the first 1,000 represent the top half-percent nationwide.
Districts with highly ranked schools in Nassau County are Jericho, Manhasset, Garden City, Great Neck, Syosset, North Shore, East Williston, Roslyn, Herricks, Plainview-Old Bethpage, Port Washington and Bellmore-Merrick. Great Neck had two schools listed.
In Suffolk County, districts with high-performing schools are Cold Spring Harbor, Harborfields, Elwood, Hauppauge and Half Hollow Hills. Half Hollow Hills also had two schools posted.
While pleased with their schools' inclusion, some local administrators warned of tough times ahead, should New York State proceed with potential cuts in financial assistance.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo over the weekend raised the possibility of a 50% reduction, then on Monday talked about a conceivable 20% across-the-board cut to education, hospitals and local governments.
The situation remains uncertain, because Congress is negotiating another financial relief bill that could include additional funding for states.
One superintendent of a highly ranked district, Kenneth Bossert of Elwood, said his teachers had done everything possible to prepare for school closings last month — for example, by preparing two weeks' worth of academic materials in advance for students's use at home. Bossert added, however, that a 20% aid cut would cost his system $3 million for the 2020-21 school year, a scenario he described as potentially "catastrophic."
"The blue-ribbon, award-winning program that we offer, we couldn't begin to replicate next year," Bossert said.
Elwood's John Glenn High School ranked 808th in the latest national listings.
Educational leaders said it's worth noting that their schools do well in national comparisons, even though they accept all students who live within district boundaries. In contrast, many listed schools in other regions are selective — that is, they accept only students who score well on admissions tests or other criteria.
For example, the top-rated school for 2020 is the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, a magnet school serving a regional enrollment in suburban Fairfax County, Virgina. Also high in the rankings are several selective academies in New York City, including Townsend Harris High School in Flushing, Queens.
Most schools in the highest bracket are repeaters from past years. For example, Jericho High School, ranked 127th nationwide, led the Island for 2020, just as it did last year, when it placed 134th.
Hank Grishman, superintendent of the Jericho district, said he expects local students to do well again next month, when they take Advanced Placement tests that are a major factor in national rankings. Sponsors of AP courses and exams at the Manhattan-based College Board announced recently that tests will be shortened and offered online, due to widespread school closings forced by the coronavirus.
For next fall, Grishman said, staffers in the 3,100-student district already are mapping out programs, as well as course schedules for the middle school and high school. Still, he added, many questions remain to be answered, such as whether classes will be phased in as a health precaution or opened all at once.
Some issues, Grishman said, can be settled only after the state sends out specific guidelines — action he hopes will be taken in a timely way.
"Do 2,000 students show up on the first day of school on the middle school and high school campus?" Grishman said. "That's the question."
Another question, local administrators said, is how much "catch-up" work will be required in the fall for students who missed lessons this term due to closings.
Lorna Lewis, the Plainview-Old Bethpage superintendent, said her staff is working on "pacing" charts, showing where students need to be academically at various points in the school year in order to match achievement from years past. Plainview-Old Bethpage/John F. Kennedy High School ranked 644th nationally this year.
"However, we know the month of September will be spent in some sort of remediation at every grade level," Lewis said.
John Hildebrand is Newsday's senior education writer and has covered school news and policy issues affecting Long Island for more than 40 years.
