Chicago Public Schools announced that five of its high schools placed among the top 100 in the nation, with Walter Payton College Prep ranked as the No. 5 high school in the country, based on the 2022 Best U.S. High Schools list from U.S. News & World Report. Other CPS high schools in the top 100 include Northside College Preparatory (No. 31), Jones College Prep (No. 51), Whitney Young Magnet High School (No. 67) and Lane Tech (No. 84). “We know that the successful programming and initiatives at these great schools inspires and informs teaching and learning in classrooms across CPS,” said CPS CEO Pedro Martinez. “We are extremely proud of these schools and know that many of their winning strategies and practices can be found in schools across our District where communities stand with us to ensure our students’ academic success.”

Payton once again placed first in both Chicago and across all of Illinois. In recent years, the school has repeatedly ranked as the top school in the state, and has consistently placed among the top schools in the country. The report notes that Payton has a 99 percent graduation rate and that 98 percent of students took at least one AP exam. The top five schools in Illinois are also CPS schools. In addition to Payton, the list includes Northside College Preparatory (No. 2), Jones College Prep (No. 3), Whitney Young Magnet High School (No. 4) and Lane Tech (5). The rankings are based on college readiness, reading and math proficiency and performance, underserved student performance, college curriculum breadth and graduation rates.