SCHOOLS

Central schools make Daily Beast best list

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All three Bellmore-Merrick high schools were named to The Daily Beast’s “Top High Schools of 2014” national ranking, Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District officials said last week.

The Daily Beast, a news and opinion website, released its inaugural list, ranking more than 700 of the nation’s public high schools, in late August. Kennedy, Calhoun and Mepham high schools all made the top 200, with Kennedy receiving a special designation as one of the “Best of the Northeast.”

Kennedy was named the 76th best high school in the country, and it ranked 19th on a list of the 25 best schools in the region. Calhoun came in at 150 nationally, and Mepham ranked 157th. The list has changed since its original publication, Daily Beast staffers noted, because some schools submitted data late or incorrectly.

John DeTommaso, superintendent of the Central High School District, said he was pleased for the entire community. He said these distinctions are a testament to the staff’s hard work and students’ commitment to academic excellence.

“A list can’t measure the experience students have in school, but to have all three schools on the list is a source of pride for us,” he said.

Brandy Zadrozny, who wrote a story explaining the methodology behind the rankings, said that Daily Beast staffers consulted 2012-13 data from the U.S. Department of Education and contacted public schools with graduation rates of at least 85 percent. Around 1,200 schools completed the survey; those that submitted data late or made changes were marked with an asterisk on the final list.

To determine its rankings, The Daily Beast factored in:

  • Graduation rates (30 percent of score) 
  • College acceptance rates (30 percent)
  • Advanced Placement/International Baccalaureate program/Advanced International Certificate of Education tests taken per student (10 percent) 
  • Average A.P./I.B./AICE test scores (10 percent)
  • Percentage of students enrolled in at least one A.P./I.B./AICE course (10 percent) 
  • Average SAT/ACT test scores (10 percent)

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