Peninsula High Ranked One of Best Schools for Math, Science

was ranked as one of the best high schools in the nation for math and science, based in part on student performance in those subjects, according to a U.S. News & World Report ranking released last week.

The school came in at No. 78 on a list of 208 schools. To qualify for the Math and Science ranking, a school first had to be listed as either Gold, Silver, or Honorable Mention in the U.S. News Best High Schools rankings published in December 2009. Peninsula High was ranked as a Silver Medal school.

The nearly 600 schools were evaluated based on their students' participation rates and performances on AP exams in math and science.

"Any school that ranks first on our list is doing an extremely good job motivating and educating its students," said U.S. News & World Report Editor Brian Kelly in a statement. "But all of these schools are doing a good job for America by making sure the country is producing the next generation workforce."

Peninsula was joined by Maritime and Science Technology High School in Key Biscayne, Fla. in the No. 78 spot.

The top-performing high school for math and science was High Technology High School in Lincroft, N.J.

This was the first ranking of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) schools by U.S. News & World Report.