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South Texas ISD Campuses Are “Beating the Odds”

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Science Academy, Med High and Medical Academy among the top high schools in the nation for low-income students

In Newsweek’s 2016 “Beating the Odds” list, released last week, three South Texas Independent School District (STISD) campuses rank among the 500 top high schools in the nation for low-income students.

The Science Academy of South Texas (Science Academy) ranked 45th, South Texas High School for Health Professions (Med High) ranked 76th and South Texas Academy for Medical Professions (Medical Academy) ranked 293rd.

According to Newsweek, schools included in the “Beating the Odds” ranking were evaluated through a college readiness index based on six indicators – the ratio of students to counselor FTE, changes in 9th- and 12th-grade student enrollment rates (referred to as holding power), high school graduation rates, a weighted SAT/ACT composite score, a weighted AP/IB/dual enrollment composite score, and the percentage of students enrolling in college – and were ranked according to how well the schools performed relative to schools with similar proportions of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.

Science Academy also ranked number 254 on the second listing released by Newsweek — “America’s Top High Schools 2016”— which ranked the top 500 public high schools in the nation without taking into account “non-school factors” on rankings.

To see the “America’s Top High Schools 2016” list, visit http://www.newsweek.com/high-schools/americas-top-high-schools-2016, and for information regarding the “Beating the Odds” list, visit http://www.newsweek.com/high-schools/beating-odds-2016. Additional information regarding the methodology for this year’s rankings and Frequently Asked Questions can be found on those websites.

Science Academy, Med High, and Medical Academy are tuition-free magnet high schools offering college- and career-preparatory education to students from Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy Counties. For more information, call 1-800-21STUDY or visit www.stisd.net.

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