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Hollis Brookline High Named one of most challenging schools by Washington Post study

HOLLIS – According to a story by the Washington Post, Hollis Brookline High School has been named one of the most challenging high schools in the U.S.

It is the only public high school in New Hampshire included on the list, joined by Philips Exeter and St. Paul’s Academy in Concord.

Washington Post reporter Jay Mathews created a challenge index by taking the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at a school each year and dividing that by the number of seniors who graduated in May or June. The index only considers participation, not test scores. An index of one or more is considered modest, and only nine percent of the approximately 22,000 public high schools in the country managed to reach that standard and earn placement on the list.

The top score was 21.9, earned by American Indian Public Charter School in Oakland, Calif.

The score for HBHS was 1.755, which ranks 1,239 on the list of 2,025 scoring higher than one.

“We have a high number of students participating in AP exams,” said John Moody, interim superintendent. “This is just one indicator of the link between this and Common Core, and that in spite of the contention that we have diminished our high standards, we have not. We are doing our job.”

HBHS has previously made the list, with an index of 1.8 and a rank of 1,130 in 2011 and an index of 1.52 and rank of 1,305 in 2012. Data for 2013 was not available.

To read more about Mathew’s challenge index and the rankings, go to www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/abcs-of-americas-most-challenging-high-schools/2014/04/02/bf19b1c2-b8f1-11e3-899e-bb708e3539dd_story.html.