Fort Myers High named one of America’s top 100 high schools
Lee County Public Schools is very proud to announce that Fort Myers High School has been ranked 71st by Newsweek Magazine in it’s annual rankings of the best high schools in America. This is yet another honor in a long list of honors earned by the school.
“I cannot adequately express how proud I am of Fort Myers High the students, faculty, administration and support staff,” said Dr. James Browder, Superintendent of Schools. “Fort Myers High has been a model for other schools locally, statewide and nationally and it’s a great honor to be considered one of America’s Top 100 schools.”
This honor is nothing new for Fort Myers High they routinely appear in Newsweek magazine’s list of top high schools, being ranked 99th last year. Fort Myers High is the only Southwest Florida high school ranked in the top 100.
Newsweek magazine ranks the nation’s high schools each year by taking the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or Cambridge tests given at a school and dividing that total by the number of graduating seniors. The reason they choose this criteria is because these programs (AP, IB and Cambridge) give average students a chance to experience a highly rigorous course load. Studies have shown that some of the best predictors of college graduation were not necessarily good high school grades or test scores, but rather if a student had an intense academic experience in high school.
“With the increasing number of high schools offering advanced academic programs, this is proof of the dedication and hard work of our teachers and students to improve our rank 28 spots,” said David LaRosa, Principal, Fort Myers High. “We’ll continue to provide a rigorous course of study for our students that’s our commitment at Fort Myers High.”