Here’s Where Dubuque Schools Rank in Iowa’s Top 100 Public High Schools
Our local education has always been something to take pride over. Preparing generations of future adults for the real world is challenging, to say the least, but also rewarding. The proof is in the pudding, as they say, and two area schools have placed themselves well in our Iowa education system.
Western Dubuque and Cascade High Schools have earned significant national recognition, with their recent inclusion in the esteemed U.S. News & World Report's "2023-2024 Best Public High Schools" rankings. These rankings (unveiled on August 29th) spotlight institutions that excel in academics and effectively prepare students for higher education. Western Dubuque High School secured an impressive #3,782 rank, while Cascade High School closely followed at #3,964, both solidly placing them in the top 25% of the nearly 18,000 public high schools evaluated across the country.
"We are thrilled to receive this recognition which highlights the unending effort of our staff, parents, and community to provide impactful individual learning opportunities for our students."
-Jacob Feldmann, Principal of Western Dubuque High School
Of real note, the state of Iowa was represented by only 40 high schools on this prestigious list of the top high schools nationwide. On a state level, Western Dubuque High School secured the #25 spot, and Cascade High School attained the #29 position among approximately 320 featured high schools in Iowa for this year. Other local schools making the top 100 included Hempstead High School at #69, and Dubuque Senior High School at #54.
"The Cascade Jr./Sr. High School community is excited to receive this recognition as it's a reflection of the high impact work our students, our staff, and our community provide to become better every day.”
-Ryan Fritz, Principal of Cascade High School
The comprehensive evaluation by the U.S. News & World Report encompassed six crucial factors: college readiness, proficiency in reading and math, performance in reading and math, accomplishments of students facing disadvantages, accessibility to advanced coursework, and graduation rates. These aspects underline the approach taken to assess a school's effectiveness in various educational domains.
"This recognition reflects the dedication of our students, faculty, and families in providing an outstanding education. Our commitment to preparing students for higher education and their future careers remains unwavering."
-Dr. Dan Butler, Superintendent of the Western Dubuque County Community School District
Western Dubuque and Cascade High Schools' high national rankings in the U.S. News & World Report's assessment underscore our local community's dedication to academic excellence, comprehensive student development, and community collaboration. These achievements celebrate the commitment and hard work of all involved in the nurturing of exceptional educational environments.
Iowa's Top 100 Public High Schools are as follows:
- 100) Gladbrook-Reinbeck High School; Reinbeck
- 99) Prairie High School; Cedar Rapids
- 98) Sheldon High School; Sheldon
- 97) South Winneshiek High School; Calmar
- 96) North Cedar High School, Clarence
- 95) Atlantic High School; Atlantic
- 94) South Hamilton Middle and High School; Jewell
- 93) Washington High School; Cherokee
- 92) Nevada High School; Nevada
- 91) East High School; Sioux City
- 90) Lisbon High School; Lisbon
- 89) Central Springs High School; Manly
- 88) Emmetsburg High School; Emmetsburg
- 87) Coon Rapids-Bayard 4-12 Attendance Center; Coon Rapids
- 86) Okoboji High School; Milford
- 85) Moc-Floyd Valley High School; Orange City
- 84) Bondurant-Farrar High School; Bondurant
- 83) Indianola High School; Indianola
- 82) West High School; Waterloo
- 81) North High School; Sioux City
- 80) Independence Junior Senior High School; Independence
- 79) Iowa Valley Jr-Sr High School; Marengo
- 78) Albia High School; Albia
- 77) Vinton-Shellsburg High School; Vinton
- 76) Iowa Connections Academy High School; Anita
- 75) Spencer High School; Spencer
- 74) Glenwood Senior High School; Glenwood
- 73) Mediapolis High School; Mediapolis
- 72) Montezuma High School; Montezuma
- 71) Spirit Lake High School; Spirit Lake
- 70) H-L-V Junior-Senior High School; Victor
- 69) Hempstead High School; Dubuque
- 68) New Hampton High School; New Hampton
- 67) Mount Ayr High School; Mount Ayr
- 66) AHSTW High School; Avoca
- 65) Dallas Center-Grimes High School; Grimes
- 64) Waukon High School; Waukon
- 63) Treynor Middle School / High School; Treynor
- 62) Central Dewitt High School; De Witt
- 61) Underwood High School; Underwood
- 60) Logan-Magnolia Jr-Sr High School; Logan
- 59) Harlan High School; Harlan
- 58) Shenandoah High School; Shenandoah
- 57) Humboldt High School; Humboldt
- 56) Ballard Community Senior High School; Huxley
- 55) Grundy Center High School; Grundy Center
- 54) Dubuque Senior High School; Dubuque
- 53) Solon High School; Solon
- 52) Sioux Central High School; Sioux Rapids
- 51) Roosevelt High School; Des Moines
- 50) Mid-Prairie High School; Wellman
- 49) Southeast Polk High School; Pleasant Hill
- 48) Stanton High School; Stanton
- 47) Rock Valley Jr-Sr High School; Rock Valley
- 46) Hinton High School; Hinton
- 45) Lewis Central Senior High School; Council Bluffs
- 44) West Marshall High School; State Center
- 43) East Mills High School; Malvern
- 42) West Lyon High School; Inwood
- 41) Sergeant Bluff-Luton Senior High School; Sergeant Bluff
- 40) Baxter High School; Baxter
- 39) Clear Creek Amana High School; Tiffin
- 38) Lawton-Bronson Jr/Sr High School; Lawton
- 37) Marion High School; Marion
- 36) Waverly-Shell Rock Senior High School; Waverly
- 35) St Ansgar High School; St Ansgar
- 34) Hudson High School; Hudson
- 33) Odebolt Arthur Battle Creek Ida Grove High School; Ida Grove
- 32) Norwalk Senior High School; Norwalk
- 31) Kingsley-Pierson High School; Kingsley
- 30) Bedford High School; Bedford
- 29) Cascade Junior-Senior High School; Cascade
- 28) Grinnell Community Senior High School; Grinnell
- 27) North Scott Senior High School; Eldridge
- 26) Central Lyon Senior High School; Rock Rapids
- 25) Western Dubuque High School; Epworth
- 24) Waukee Senior High School; Waukee
- 23) Johnston Senior High School; Johnston
- 22) Bettendorf High School; Bettendorf
- 21) Denver Senior High School; Denver
- 20) John F. Kennedy High School; Cedar Rapids
- 19) Linn-Mar High School; Marion
- 18) Ankeny Centennial High School; Ankeny
- 17) Cedar Falls High School; Cedar Falls
- 16) North Polk High School; Alleman
- 15) Mount Vernon High School; Mount Vernon
- 14) Ankeny High School; Ankeny
- 13) Ames High School; Ames
- 12) Iowa City High School; Iowa City
- 11) Maquoketa Valley Senior High School; Delhi
- 10) Adel DeSoto Minburn (ADM) High School; Adel
- 9) Gilbert High School; Gilbert
- 8) Pella High School; Pella
- 7) Valley High School; West Des Moines
- 6) Liberty High School; North Liberty
- 5) Williamsburg Jr-Sr High School; Williamsburg
- 4) Pleasant Valley High School; Bettendorf
- 3) Van Meter Jr-Sr High School; Van Meter
- 2) Decorah High School; Decorah
- 1) West Senior High School; Iowa City