For the first time since Newsweek magazine began ranking America's "best" high schools in 1998, Lowell has cracked the list, earning the 26th spot. The rankings, developed by Washington Post writer Jay Matthews, are based upon his Challenge Index, which is calculated by dividing the total number of Advanced Placement exams administered at a school by the number of graduating seniors. The intent of this yardstick is to recognize those high schools that encourage a broad cross-section of their student body to challenge themselves with the demanding curriculum of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses. The latest rankings, published in Newsweek's May 8th issue, are based upon data from the 2004-2005 school year, when Lowell students sat for a total of 2,726 AP exams, thus earning a Challenge Index score of 4.462. (Nationally, only 43 schools boast a Challenge Index score above four.)
Although Lowell's Advanced Placement program has long been one of the nation's finest and largest, Newsweek had previously barred Lowell - along with all other schools that admitted half of more of their students based upon academic merit - from its rankings. But this year, the magazine recognized that this rule had "penalized some inner-city magnet schools that had high Challenge Index ratings."
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Lowell alumni and friends again showed their strong support for current students with nearly $450,000
in donations that have been put to good use in ways that touch nearly every student.
From the baseball team to the Hebrew language program and from science lab equipment to theater lighting,
recent donations to the Lowell Alumni Association have had a direct impact by improving the Lowell experience
both in and outside of the classroom.
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