Five Eastside high schools make Newsweek's top 100

For the third year in a row, five Bellevue high schools have been named to Newsweek magazine's list of top 1,500 public high schools in the country.

The schools are the International School, ranked 11th; Interlake High, 18th; Newport High, 34th; Sammamish High, 47th; and Bellevue High, 78th. All five schools moved up a notch or two in ranking from last year, except for the International School, which was 10th last year. Other Puget Sound-area schools that made the list are: Edmonds-Woodway High in Edmonds, 318th; Garfield High in Seattle, 497th; Redmond High in Redmond, 684th; Mercer Island High in Mercer Island, 890th; Ingraham High in Seattle, 940; Inglemoor High in Kenmore, 1,101st; Issaquah High in Issaquah, 1,106th; and Shorewood High in Shoreline, 1,362nd.

A substantial component of the listing is determined by counting how many students take Advanced Placement (AP) exams, which are administered in May, and dividing that number by the number of seniors graduating in May or June. AP classes use a rigorous standardized curriculum developed by the College Board, and students are encouraged to take the optional exams at the end of the class to earn college credit.

The listing also takes into account exams taken in the International Baccalaureate program, another rigorous college-level program.

To see Newsweek's list of top high schools, go to http://www.newsweek.com/id/201160.