Model Laboratory on EKU campus among nation’s top public schools

Richmond, Ky. – For the second consecutive year, Model Laboratory High School on the campus of Eastern Kentucky University ranks among the top 2 percent of the nation’s public high schools, according to Newsweek.

In the magazine’s recently released “America’s Top High Schools 2015” survey, Model is one of only three Kentucky schools to rank in the top 500 among the nation’s approximately 25,000 public high schools.

Model Lab Interim Director Dr. Ann Burns attributed the high ranking to Model’s “emphasis on academics and individualized learning for all students. Each student is expected to succeed, and that makes all the difference in the world.”

Working with research partner Westat to determine the rankings, Newsweek considered such factors as proficiency rates on standardized state-level math and reading/language arts assessments as well as a “College Readiness Index” based on college enrollment rate, graduation rate, weighted AP/IB/dual enrollment composite, weighted SAT/ACT composite, student retention and counselor-to-student ratio.

Newsweek reported that Model High’s graduation rate was 100 percent and its college-bound rate 93.3 percent. Its average SAT and ACT scores were 1990 and 23, respectively. More than 16 percent of its students were participating in dual enrollment, for which they received both high school and college credit for taking EKU classes.

Earlier this summer, the research site Niche ranked Model as the third best public high school in Kentucky

Model Lab has 225 students in grades 9-12. Its 2015 graduating class of 55 students amassed $1.2 million in scholarships.

Louisville duPont Manual and Fort Thomas Highlands were the only other Kentucky schools to make the list. For the complete list of the nation’s top 500 high schools, according to Newsweek, visit www.newsweek.com/high-schools/americas-top-high-schools-2015.

Established more than a century ago on the Eastern campus, Model Laboratory School educates students from pre-K through 12th grade while providing field experiences for EKU students and demonstrating evidence-based strategies. It is the Commonwealth’s only remaining laboratory school.