The latest U.S. News & World Report is out with their National list of the best High Schools in the country, and five local Connecticut schools made the grade getting high honors.

The National list of the country's best High Schools was released on Wednesday (May 9), and 15 Connecticut High Schools were ranked among the 500 best schools nationwide.

According to patch.com, five local schools received top honors. Ridgefield High School, Wilton High School, and Weston High School were awarded Gold standard, while Newtown High School, and Joel Barlow in Redding were awarded a Silver medal.

The list, which included over 20,000 schools from across the country, was compiled by the U.S. News and World Report and based its criteria on above average state test scores, having challenging course work and the percentage of students from that school that graduate on time.

In case you're wondering, Connecticut ranked seventh as a state, tied with Kansas, and seven percent of Connecticut High Schools were awarded Gold medals, while 12.1 percent of High Schools received Silver medals.

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