The best college prep

THE EXPERST: Admissions directors at area colleges look at local schools, examining how well the school's college-prep curricula prepares the graduate for success.

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Perhaps no one knows the quality of area high schools so well as the admissions directors at area colleges.

Every year, they examine the work of high-school seniors to decide which ones are worthy of being admitted. They have a strong sense of which schools do a good job of preparing their students for college, and which do not.

Last spring, The Seattle Times circulated a list of schools to 10 college-admissions directors and college counselors, asking them to rate the schools on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being "poor" and 5 being "excellent").

The experts were told that their comments would be used in summarizing why some schools received the scores they did, although the comments would not be attributed.

(The University of Washington, which uses its own statistical method of evaluating schools, did not participate.)

What follows is a summary of the experts' ratings, and their comments. A number of schools are not included because too few experts rated the school, or because their comments contradicted one another, or because the experts rated the schools without comment. Names of the experts are at the bottom:

Bainbridge Island

Bainbridge High School (4): Experts say this school's course offerings are excellent, the staff is supportive and the students are motivated and creative, although the school's population is homogeneous.

Bellevue

Bellevue High School (3.65): With a strong variety of classes offered and a well-informed counseling staff, this school gets high marks.

Interlake High School, Bellevue (3.19): This school's strength is its International Baccalaureate program; the rest of the classes are somewhat uneven.

International School, Bellevue (4.19): "This is by far my favorite public school!" wrote one admissions director. "I wish there were many more like it." Others praised it for exceptionally strong academics despite limited offerings because of the school's small size. One weakness - the school's exclusive offerings of European/romance languages, an approach that doesn't make sense in 2000, a counselor wrote. This school received the highest overall rating of any public high school in the area.

Newport High School, Bellevue (3.7): This school receives praise for strong classes and extracurricular offerings. Parent expectations are high, and the atmosphere among students in the top half of the class is intensely competitive.

Edmonds

Edmonds-Woodway High School, Edmonds (3): The International Baccalaureate program is a big draw and students enrolled in the program work hard, experts say.

Meadowdale High School, Edmonds (2.71): Although one counselor thought this school was too big with 1,441 students, another called it a nice alternative for highly capable students who don't want to go through the International Baccalaureate program at Edmonds-Woodway.

Federal Way

Federal Way High School (2.75): Students at the top of the class seem well-prepared for even the most challenging colleges, one counselor wrote.

Highlineº

Mount Rainier High School, Highline (3.4): This school's International Baccalaureate program gives it a leg up.

Issaquah

Issaquah High School (3.33): This school's strong Advanced Placement offerings and college- counseling resources make it stand out, but one admissions director was critical that the school's graduation requirements are not more rigorous.

Skyline High School, Issaquah (3.67): Although it's a relatively new school (it opened in fall 1997), Skyline is already winning strong marks for its International Baccalaureate program. One expert described the school as having a "relaxed yet controlled environment" and noted the school is growing rapidly; another noted that the school population is affluent and homogeneous.

Kent

Kentlake High School, Kent (3): The campus gets top marks from experts, the students get thumbs-up for being "pleasant and relaxed" and the school in general is well-run.

Kentwood High School, Kent (3.17): An older school, it's nevertheless well maintained and its college-counseling office gets high marks from one expert.

Lake Washington

Juanita High School, Lake Washington (3.38): The addition of Advanced Placement is a plus for this school, which has consistently well-prepared students and strong college counseling.

Lake Washington High School (3.61): This school gets good marks for strong academic preparation and its extensive offering of enrichment activities. College-counseling resources are also strong.

Redmond High School, Lake Washington (3.56): Another Eastside school that does a good job of preparing its students for college.

Mercer Island

Mercer Island High School (3.72): Although it has one of the top reputations among area public schools, college-admissions directors say the school's strong students are "a reflection of the affluence and success orientation of the community . . . the students and families push themselves." It's a highly competitive school with high expectations from all sides. Some suggested that the school should add more course electives.

Mukilteo

Kamiak High School, Mukilteo (3.57): This school gets high marks for having a large number of Advanced Placement and honors classes.

Northshore

Inglemoor High School, Northshore (3.6): Once again, the International Baccalaureate program helps this school's reputation, as does its strong theater department. College counseling was considered excellent.

Woodinville High School, Northshore (3.5): Although the student body is homogeneous, admissions directors say students do well here and the college-counseling center is a plus.

Renton

Charles A. Lindbergh High School, Renton (3): "A school that helps students from moderate means advance," wrote one admissions director.

Seattle

Ballard High School, Seattle (3): This newly rebuilt Seattle school should become a top academic school in the future because of the draw of its new facilities and high goals of the staff, experts predicted.

Franklin High School, Seattle (3.06): This school gets higher marks for solid class offerings, its outstanding mock-trial program and strong theater program. The students at the top of the class were unusually strong, one admissions director wrote, and the counseling staff is highly regarded by parents.

Garfield High School, Seattle (4.03): Admissions directors and counselors agreed that this school does an excellent job with its finest students, but that "many of the rest are allowed to fall through the cracks." Wrote another: "There is little support for students not participating in the accelerated programs." Many admissions directors and counselors wondered how the turmoil of 1999-2000 would affect this school - Principal Al Jones resigned after he was accused of improper conduct with a student, and a popular teacher committed suicide amid allegations of inappropriate conduct with students.

Nathan Hale High School, Seattle (2.88): This school gets high marks for its ninth- and 10th- grade academy, but low marks for the condition of the buildings.

Nova Alternative High School, Seattle (too few replies to rate): Although many admissions directors weren't familiar with this school, others wrote that the self-directed program and individualized approach offered by this school is a good fit for certain students.

Roosevelt High School, Seattle (3.48): This north Seattle school has a tough grading scale, strong curriculum and strong students, although one college adviser thought the school was assigning more busy work and less substantial instruction in the last few years. The theater department gets high marks.

Summit, Seattle (2.75): This K-12 school - the only such public school in the area - gets kudos for offering a more personal education than larger, more traditional public schools. One counselor liked the sense of community between older and younger students.

Shorecrest High School, Shoreline (4.1): This school gets high marks for preparing its students well for college, although one counselor said that some students seem to fall through the cracks. The music and theater programs get high marks.

Shoreline

Shorewood High School, Shoreline (4): Like Shorecrest, this school is well-liked by admissions directors.

Vashon Island

Vashon Island High School (2.8): Although the students at this island school come from families that value education, the school lacks honors and Advanced Placement options, experts wrote. It also needs to offer more electives and greater exposure to highly selective colleges.

Private schools

Archbishop Murphy High School, Everett (3): This school seems to be growing stronger and improving, experts said.

Blanchet High School, Seattle (3.31): This school, which won a national Blue Ribbon award, produces some excellent students, and one admissions director said the religion requirement is quite rigorous.

Eastside Catholic High School, Bellevue (3.28): This school deals effectively with a wide range of students.

Forest Ridge, Bellevue (4): This all-girls Catholic school gets high marks for its technology emphasis in the younger years.

Holy Names Academy, Seattle (4.56): This all-girl Catholic school is one of the top-rated private schools in the area - one admissions director called it "a hidden gem and a wonderful option for girls," while another described it as a "secret treasure." The school gets especially high marks for taking students from modest backgrounds and making them strong students, with an extremely challenging academic program and a strong sense of community.

King's Junior-Senior High School (3.29): Counselors were split over this school; one said it offered outstanding academics for strong students, and was a good choice even for students who don't embrace the conservative Christian values. But another called it run-of-the-mill.

Lakeside School, Seattle (4.86): The top-rated private school in the area, Lakeside also enjoys a strong reputation nationally, admissions directors wrote. Even students at the low end of class standings are well-prepared for college. The school is highly selective in student admissions.

Northwest Yeshiva High School, Mercer Island (too few responses to rate): Although not well-known among college admissions directors, the school gets strong marks from counselors for being strong academically in both secular and religious courses.

O'Dea High School, Seattle (3.33): The school has a "unique and diverse academic community" but a few admissions directors gave it lower marks for being very athletic-oriented and not being rigorous enough.

Seattle Academy, Seattle (3.33): This school gets high marks for working well with students with learning differences. The head of school, Jean Orvis, also gets high marks.

Seattle Preparatory School, Seattle (4.16): This school gets good marks for holding high expectations of its students and running a rigorous college-prep program. The school has several tracks to accommodate different levels of students. Students "are very success and prestige oriented," one admissions director wrote.

The Bush School, Seattle (3.86): Changes in top administration may help redefine a school that is in need of a "clearer identification," many admissions directors wrote. Some classes are very rigorous, but others are less so.

The Northwest School, Seattle (4.41): One of the top-rated private schools. One college admissions director called Northwest "absolutely superb . . . people underestimate them because of their informal, unpretentious, granola image." The school gets strong marks for an individualized approach combined with innovation and academic rigor. The counseling staff gets high marks.

The Overlake School, Redmond (4): A school that hasn't yet reached its "awesome potential," one admissions director wrote. Students work hard here, and there's a great deal of in-class discussion - students need to be able to process auditory information quickly.

University Preparatory Academy (4): One admissions director called it "a fine school and getting better steadily." The school gets high marks for high graduation standards, a strong curriculum, and an ability "to work effectively with a wide range of students - especially strong support of those with learning differences."

Experts: Philip Ballinger, dean of admissions, Gonzaga University; Kenneth Cornell, director of admissions, Seattle Pacific University; Linda Jacobs, director, College Placement Services (public schools only); Peter Jones, director of admissions, University of Puget Sound; Judith Mackenzie, college- planning specialist, Educational Referral Services; Michael McKeon, dean of admissions, Seattle University; Steve Vawter, former assistant dean of admissions, Whitworth College; Pauline Reiter, director, College Placement Consultants; Michael Sexton, dean of admissions, Lewis and Clark College; and Ruth Wilson, school-placement specialist, Seattle.

Katherine Long's phone message number is 206-464-2219. Her e-mail address is klong@seatimes.com.