Six Cherry Creek School District high schools named to the Washington Post’s list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools

Smoky Hill was named to the Washington Post’s list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools in 2017.

Haley Commons, Staffer

Smoky Hill High School was named as one of six Cherry Creek School District high schools to make the Washington Post’s list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools, the most of any Colorado school district.

 

America’s Most Challenging High Schools ranks high schools through “an index formula that’s a simple ratio: the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at a school each year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated that year. A ratio of 1.000 means the school has as many tests as graduates”, says the Washington Post.

 

Smoky Hill was ranked number 779 out of 2,323 high schools named to the list. There are more than 26,000 high schools in the United States.

 

With AP tests over, it is expected for Smoky’s AP statistics to increase. More than two-thirds of the students taking the AP exams have scored a three or above in past years and 35 Smoky Hill students have qualified as National AP Scholars since 2006.

 

Smoky Hill is one of 653 high schools in America to offer IB Middle Years Programme and one of 915 schools to offer IB Diploma Programme.

 

With the numerous AP courses offered and the number of students involved in/taking AP and IB tests (all divided by the number of 517 seniors graduating in 2017), it is no wonder Smoky Hill was named to Washington Post’s list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools.

 

Congratulations to the other Cherry Creek District also named to the list:

Cherokee Trail

Cherry Creek

Eaglecrest

Grandview

Overland