U.S. News Excluded New York A.P. Data in 2026 Rankings
The state education department withheld data due to privacy concerns, leading to significant changes in school standings.
Updated on Sept. 30, 2026 in Secondary Education
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In August 2026, U.S. News & World Report published high school rankings for New York State that excluded Advanced Placement data. This move followed an order from the New York State Education Department prohibiting the College Board from sharing the information.
Why it matters
The exclusion of A.P. performance metrics, which typically contribute to a significant portion of the college readiness score, reflects a growing tension between state privacy mandates and national education rankings. As a result, schools across the state saw dramatic shifts in their national positioning.
College readiness accounts for 30 percent of the total U.S. News score. Without A.P. data, rankings fluctuated significantly, with the Baccalaureate School for Global Education improving by 85 spots.
The players
New York State Education Department
This state agency oversees public education and issued the directive to withhold student A.P. data.
College Board
This non-profit organization manages the Advanced Placement program and standardizes college readiness testing.
Success Academy
This charter school network filed a lawsuit against the New York State education commissioner.
The details
U.S. News adjusted its formula by prioritizing International Baccalaureate exam scores to compensate for the missing A.P. data. While institutions like The Brooklyn Latin School moved to the top of the state list, other notable schools like the Success Academy High School of the Liberal Arts saw their rankings decline.
Timeline
August 2026: School superintendents discovered the new U.S. News rankings.
September 2026: Superintendents wrote letters to the New York Education Department.
Culture Shift
The dispute mirrors broader tensions regarding the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and its application to third-party data aggregation. This marks a departure from standard reporting practices as states increasingly limit the data available for national educational comparisons.
Families may see significant changes in how their local high school is perceived, with schools like Commack High School improving by 420 spots under the new formula. Residents should be aware that these shifts reflect method changes rather than fundamental changes in school curriculum.
The takeaway
When interpreting school rankings, parents should look beyond the final number to understand which data points are included in the scoring process. Evaluating schools based on multiple criteria provides a more accurate view of academic quality than relying on a single adjusted metric.
Further reading
Learn more about the current Secondary Education landscape in New York State.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The New York Times.
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