A new ranking of the top private high schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area has dropped.
Niche, an education information website, recently published its 2024 Best Private High Schools list, and many of them are located within Dallas city limits.
Evaluating criteria ranging from the share of students who go on to attend college to the ratio of students to full-time teachers, analysts at Niche worked to compile an “accurate and transparent” ranking.
Here is a closer look at the top 10 results:
No.1 – St. Mark’s School of Texas
Sitting pretty in first place is St. Mark’s School of Texas, an all-boys institution esteemed for its academics and student life. It was also named the very best all-boys high school in the country. Tuition comes in at $35,821 a year, with 14% of students receiving financial aid.
“Not only did the rigorous coursework strengthen my academic abilities and prepare me well for college, the school had a profound impact on my character development, and I leave the school a better man,” commented one alum on Niche’s ranking website.
No.2 – Greenhill School
Amidst the impressive roster of schools, Greenhill School in Addison nabbed the No.2 position. With a financial commitment of $38,050 annually, students can attend what Niche called the fourth-best college prep private high school in Texas.
No.3 – The Hockaday School
The Hockaday School in Dallas is an all-girls school offering an education based on its four cornerstones: character, courtesy, scholarship, and athletics. With an annual tuition fee of $30,935, students can attend what Niche calls the No.1 all-girls high school in Texas.
No.4 – Alcuin School
Alcuin School sits in the fourth spot, serving a student body of 587 at a student-teacher ratio of 9 to 1. It is the third-best high school for the arts in Texas, with a tuition of $29,400 per year.
“The teachers are skilled in dealing with multiple styles of learning (kinesthetic, verbal, and visual) often integrating all three styles seamlessly throughout the day during any given lesson, based on the needs of the child,” remarked one parent on Niche’s ranking website.
No.5 – The Episcopal School of Dallas
The Episcopal School of Dallas rounds out the top five, offering a spirited cohort of 1,170 students an education both indoors and outdoors on its 110-acre Wolf Run Ranch. The institution was also named the third-best Christian private high school in Texas, with an annual tuition rate of $37,850.
No.6 – Cistercian Preparatory School
An all-boys school in Irving, Cistercian Preparatory School, was named the second-best Catholic school and third-best all-boys school in Texas. Tuition costs $22,500 annually, and the school has a 100% graduate rate.
“Every Cistercian student has the opportunity to be exactly who they are, without having to put up a false front for their peers,” commented one parent of two students attending the school, per Niche’s website.
No.7 – Trinity Valley School
Named the top private high school in Tarrant County, Trinity Valley School awards 76% of its graduates merit scholarships, with annual tuition set at $13,780.
“Trinity Valley has helped to shape me into a dedicated, responsible, proactive student!” commented one 12th grader, per the ranking website.
No.8 – Dallas International School
Students at Dallas International School benefit from foreign language immersion, with a bilingual curriculum taught in French and English, with a third language option in German, Spanish, or Mandarin available. Tuition is $24,450 per year.
No.9 – Fort Worth Country Day School
Fort Worth Country Day School has a student body of 1,097 and charges an annual tuition of $27,430. Its student-teacher ratio is a low 7 to 1, with 100% of students graduating and later attending college.
“Country Day is a great school community in which teachers and faculty care very deeply about the students,” reported a 12th grader, according to the ranking website.
No.10 – Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas
Also named the fourth-best Catholic high school in Texas, Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas is an all-boys school with a massive community program. It is also the No.1 school in Texas for athletes. Annual tuition costs $23,700, with 27% of students receiving financial aid.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Gov. Greg Abbott called for a special legislative session to take up school choice legislation in October that, if enacted, would create education savings accounts. Such accounts would let families use up to $8,000 of taxpayer money to help with private school tuition or homeschooling expenses.
Support for some kind of school choice legislation remains over 50% in Texas as some public school systems struggle to maintain quality student achievement outcomes. Dallas ISD, for instance, only managed to graduate 81.1% of its Class of 2022 in four years, and only 41% of its students scored at grade level on their STAAR exams during the 2021-2022 school year.