Area small schools place well in state, national rankings

WAYLAND — WACO High School has placed in the top 40% of high schools in the nation and the state in the latest U.S. News & World Report high school ranking list.

The recognition is based on data from the 2021-22 school year, according to the organization’s methodology page. While the school was ranked #183 in the state for its 94% graduation rate and #82 for its “proficiency rank,” a metric evaluating its state assessment scores when controlling for students’ socioeconomic status put the high school at #7 in Iowa.

Combined with other data used for the rankings, U.S. News & World Report pegged WACO as the 64th best high school of the 353 evaluated across the Hawkeye State.

While that may not seem stellar at first glance, it’s an over performance for the 148-member student body, placing it well above larger nearby districts like Mt. Pleasant (#133,) Fairfield (#177,) and Washington (placed in a shared rank for schools from #219-317.) And it places above some high schools in more metropolitan areas, like Cedar Rapids’ George Washington High School (#179) and Sioux City’s East High School (#67.)

Principal Tim Bartels said the recognition was a surprise, but a welcome one.

“My superintendent, Mr. Crawford, sent it and said, ‘I’m not even sure if this is real,’ so I hopped on and I got the same email, and I’m like, ‘No way,’” said Bartels, who was in the middle of a sixth grade orientation when he first got the news, and excitedly shared it with the visiting students. “We did not expect it, we had never talked about national anything. When I talked to staff, (they had seen) these banners at other schools. Now we get our own banner.”

The impressive performance could make WACO more attractive to open enrollment students, and even to families thinking about where to live, according to Bartels.

It was also a major boost for morale.

“What we’re doing here is working,” Bartels said. “When families see that and students see that, that’s a validation of, ‘Man, let’s keep pushing.’ … and to actually see that in a number format, and to be recognized, there’s a lot of pride in that.”

Asked about how the small school pulled off such a feat, Bartels said it was a matter of district and building culture.

The principal conceded that the explanation was a bit cliché, but said staff and student attitudes were key to meeting goals set for curriculum improvements, internal communication, state assessment performance, and myriad other objectives around the building.

“We talk about performing well on Iowa assessments, we talk about performing well as a school, in our climate and culture,” he said. “We have not talked about ranking nationally, but I suppose that opened that door … we just have a belief that every student can learn, and that we can create an environment where that can happen.”

Bartels said the school didn’t plan to maintain its rank, but to improve it in future years, aided by a healthy roster of teaching position applications, and a plan to capitalize on the current momentum.

“What everybody says when they leave is, ‘It just feels different here,’” he said. “I feel like that’s probably a better answer than trying to answer what you do. It’s just a strong belief that we’re going to be different here, at WACO.”

Wayland isn’t the only community punching above its weight in the rankings.

Wellman’s Mid-Prairie came in at #61 in the state, with the 17th best college readiness index score of all Iowa high schools, according to the U.S. News & World Report.

Principal Chuck Banks said the institution was proud of the accomplishment as well, but that he was “not surprised” when he heard about Mid-Prairie’s placement on the list.

“Smaller districts, there’s times when we have disadvantages on things, but I also think there’s big advantages to being a district of our size,” he said. “The one-on-one attention the students get, the large amount of involvement from our community and our parents … it really boils down to having that support around us, and having that culture of learning.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com