May 19, 2008 (Vol. 7, No. 9)

High School for American Studies at Lehman College Named to US News & World Report's List of Nation's Top 100 High Schools

The High School of American Studies at Lehman College has been named one of the top 100 high schools in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's prestigious "America's Best High Schools" rankings.

"This is a tremendous achievement for a school that has been in operation for only six years," said Lehman President Ricardo R. Fernández. "It demonstrates the strength of the school's faculty, students and curriculum, as well as the real value that educational partnerships can bring to the high school experience."

Located on the Lehman campus in the northwest Bronx, the High School of American Studies offers a rigorous college preparatory curriculum coupled with an emphasis on U.S. history and politics. One of nine specialized high schools in New York City whose students are admitted through competitive exam, it was founded in 2002 as a partnership among Lehman, the New York City Department of Education, and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Designed as a "small school," with limited enrollment, it currently enrolls 331 students in ninth through twelfth grade.

Through the collaboration, students regularly attend lectures and other Lehman events, use the library and other campus facilities, and enroll in College courses during their junior and senior years. Through the support of the Gilder Lehrman Institute, students receive additional learning materials and take trips to sites and cities of historic importance, such as Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. One hundred percent of the school's first two graduating classes (2006, 2007) have gone on to college.

"We are extremely gratified to be recognized for the accomplishments of our students, teachers and parents," said Alessandro Weiss, the school's principal. "We know that our partners, Lehman College and the Gilder Lehrman Institute, have been indispensible in helping us to instill in our students a love for learning and intellectual inquiry."

The school is one of four schools to earn the "Gold Medal" status in the magazine's recent update of its rankings. Among the four was another CUNY-based school, Queens HS of Science at York College. Six other New York City high schools are also in the top 100 category: Bronx HS of Science, Brooklyn Tech HS, New Explorations Science, Tech and Math HS, Staten Island Tech HS, Stuyvesant HS and Townsend Harris HS.

U.S. News analyzed academic and enrollment data for more than 18,000 public high schools and based the rankings on a variety of factors, including state proficiency standards and college readiness. To view all the rankings, visit www.usnews.com/sections/education/high-schools.

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