All five of the top high schools in the Houston region were magnet schools at Houston ISD, according to new rankings from education and research nonprofit Children at Risk.
Nearly three-quarters of Houston-area high schools improved in the annual ratings this year, outpacing the state average. Almost 20% of them are now A-rated, up from 7% in 2023-24.
Overall, Texas’ “public schools are getting better” after years of grappling with post-pandemic declines, said Bob Sanborn, president and chief executive officer of Children at Risk.
To rank schools, Children At Risk uses three metrics based on state test scores: student achievement; performance relative to poverty; and year-over-year student growth. High school rankings also include college readiness.
Those gains were most noticeable at the high school level after the Texas Education Agency adjusted its college, career and military readiness standards in its accountability system, said Duncan Klussmann, a former Spring Branch ISD superintendent and professor of educational leadership at the University of Houston.
“Across the state, I’ve seen districts do much better in (college readiness,)” Klussmann said. “They initially were frustrated with the changes and filed the lawsuit (against the state rating system). But at the same time, they started working on making sure they adapted to the new changes, and I think that’s resulted in higher rates of districts or campuses meeting the CCMR standard.”
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CHILDREN A RISK: Houston beats Dallas, Austin regions with highest share of A-rated schools, per Children at Risk
Top schools
More than 40% of the 50 best-performing high schools in Texas are in the Houston area, even though the region is home to only 21% of the total high schools in the state.
HISD had all of the top five high schools in Greater Houston in the group’s rankings, all of which were magnet campuses.
Three of those – Carnegie Vanguard High School, Debakey School for Health Professions and Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts – were ranked among the top 10 in Texas, according to Children at Risk. Some of the schools could soon see new management models: Kinder HSPVA is moving forward to partner with an outside nonprofit next year, while Debakey and Carnegie Vanguard are taking a year to explore.
Sanborn visited Carnegie Vanguard to highlight the school’s ranking as the third best in Texas when the ratings were released earlier this month.
“HISD has the best schools in Texas,” spokesperson Lana Hill said on the district’s broadcast show HISD Now. “For the 2024-25 school year overall, HISD had the most most-improved schools of the Houston area, mirroring what we’ve seen from this transformation over the last two years.”
Just over 35 high schools in Houston earned A-ratings, including nine in HISD; five in Katy ISD; three in Cy-Fair ISD; and three schools in the Yes Prep charter network.
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HISD: Best and worst performing schools in 2025, according to Children at Risk
Most improved
Seven of the region’s 10 most improved schools were in HISD. Four of those were part of the district’s controversial New Education System, which state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles began in 2023 to improve test scores and eventually lead the district out of the state takeover.
The remaining three most improved schools – Brazosport High School in Brazosport ISD, Oak Ridge High School in Conroe ISD, and Blanson CTE High School in Aldine ISD – jumped by at least 20 points apiece.
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Most declined
HISD also had the most campuses with the steepest declines. Three campuses – Scarborough, Lamar and Furr high schools – dropped at least 13 points each. Two are part of HISD’s New Education System.
Four charter districts also posted some of the biggest drops: Kipp Sunnyside, Yes Prep East End, Harmony Science Academy’s Houston campus and International Leadership of Texas’ Windmill Lakes-Orem High School.
Anahuac ISD’s Anahuac High School, Lamar CISD’s B.F. Terry High School and Spring Branch ISD’s Northbrook High School also saw declines.
Nine campuses across Houston earned F ratings, scoring among the bottom 10% in Texas. Those included three Spring ISD campuses – Spring, Andy Dekaney and Westfield high schools – and HISD’s Scarborough and Texas Connections Academy-Houston, its online program.
Also earning F-ratings: Cleveland High School in Cleveland ISD; Hitchcock High School in Hitchcock ISD; Tarkington High in Tarkington ISD and the Legacy the School of Sport Sciences in Spring.
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This article originally published at Houston’s best and worst high schools in 2025, according to new Children at Risk data.