North Harrison recognized as Top 500 high school in U.S.

North Harrison High School has been recognized by Newsweek magazine as one of the Top 500 high schools in America.

The magazine’s recognition program honors the best high schools in the country that do an excellent job of preparing their students for college while also overcoming the obstacles posed by students at an economic disadvantage.

“Our kids have always done real well on their end-of-year tests,” said North Harrison Superintendent Rick Johnson.

Johnson said the North Harrison students have always ranked near the top in attendance and ACT scores. It had a graduation rate of 100%. The school district also scores high on the state Department of Education’s annual performance report.

“We score high in all those areas,” said Johnson.

Newsweek recognized schools for meeting the measure of helping low-income students score at or above average on state assessments. North Harrison has a high percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced lunches.

North Harrison was one of only 12 schools in Missouri to qualify for the Newsweek honor. Trenton High School was the only other North Missouri school district recognized.