We were pleased to have been notified that HCHS was named a silver medal school in a school rating done by US News and World Report. Schools have to go through 3 levels of assessment to win this award.

The first considers the overall success of the school’s enrollment on state-mandated assessments (TAKS) and the second looks at how schools’ economically disadvantaged and at-risk kids do on the same tests. If schools meet those two criteria by showing they are performing statistically better than the state in both, they are considered in the third area, how well schools are doing preparing students for college level work and the amount of college level work being completed while still in high school. This is based on the number of students who take AP or IB tests and how well students score.

All schools nationally who meet the standards in all 3 areas are then ranked highest to lowest with the top 100 schools earning gold medals and the next group of qualifiers being silver medalists.

This award truly shows what our teachers, students and parents are accomplishing. There were no other schools in Bexar county who earned any type of rating (gold, silver, or bronze). Texas had 32 total Gold and Silver schools. 10 were gold medal schools, and of those 10, 7 were magnets and 1 was a charter school.

Schools who meet the first two criteria based on TAKS data but don’t meet the AP/IB standard are considered bronze medal schools.