US News Ranks 14 Waukesha County Schools Among the Best in the Nation and State
Wales High School of Health Sciences was ranked number one in Wisconsin for the third straight year in the U.S. News Best High Schools Rankings for 2023 – 2024, which evaluated 17,680 public high schools nationwide. Fourteen high schools in the county were among the top 50 best performing Wisconsin schools. The schools that made the cut include:
| State Rank | School | District | Type | Enrollment | US Rank |
| 1 | Wales High School of Health Sciences | Kettle Moraine | Charter | 190 | 208 |
| 5 | Eisenhower Middle/High School | New Berlin | Traditional | 715 | 364 |
| 6 | Brookfield East High School | Elmbrook | Traditional | 1.337 | 426 |
| 8 | Arrowhead High School | Arrowhead | Traditional | 2,082 | 518 |
| 9 | Brookfield Central High | Elmbrook | Traditional | 1,200 | 521 |
| 16 | Pewaukee High School | Pewaukee | Traditional | 846 | 830 |
| 17 | Hamilton High School | Hamilton | STEM | 1,532 | 878 |
| 18 | KM Global School | Kettle Moraine | Charter | 81 | 900 |
| 20 | New Berlin Middle/High School | New Berlin | Traditional | 737 | 911 |
| 36 | Oconomowoc High School | Oconomowoc | Traditional | 1,679 | 1,395 |
| 37 | Menomonee Falls High School | Menomonee Falls | Traditional | 1,319 | 1,400 |
| 42 | Muskego High School | Muskego-Norway | Traditional | 1,633 | 1,477 |
| 46 | West High School | Waukesha | Traditional | 1,157 | 1,693 |
| 47 | Kettle Moraine High School | Kettle Moraine | Traditional | 909 | 1,710 |
The schools were ranked on six factors:
- College readiness, based on the proportion of seniors who earned a qualifying score on at least one Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test (30% of ranking).
- State assessment proficiency based on aggregated scores on tests required for graduation (20%).
- State assessment performance exceeding expectations related to the proportion of underserved students (20%).
- Underserved student performance on state assessments (10%).
- College curriculum breadth, based on seniors who took and earned a qualifying score on AP or IB exams in multiple content areas (10%).
- Graduation rate, based on the proportion of students who entered ninth grade in 2017-2018 and graduated four years later (10%).
U.S. News noted that magnet and charter schools had a disproportionately higher rate of schools ranked in the top national performers this year. Two of Waukesha County’s top high schools are charter schools and both are part of the Kettle Moraine School District. Kettle Moraine High School also made the list at number 47 in Wisconsin. Elmbrook and New Berlin School Districts each had two high schools in the top 50 for Wisconsin.
The U.S. News website provides additional details about the national ranking process, as well as specific details about each school’s scores for the six criteria examined.