How do Woodbridge-area high schools measure up?

Out of the 102 schools listed in Virginia, Woodbridge Senior High is No. 47 and Gar-Field is No. 54 in this year's Challenge Index, the annual list of area local schools organized by education reporter Jay Mathews of The Washington Post.

Hylton ranked at No. 40 on the list while Osbourn Park in Manassas took the 31^st spot. Dumfries' Potomac High took the top spot in Prince William County at No. 25. Freedom High School was ranked No. 100. 

In the Post's Washington, D.C.-area ranking, out of 178 schools, the standings changed:

• Woodbridge Senior High was not ranked in the D.C. standings. 
• Gar-Field was ranked No. 84 
• Hylton was ranked No. 58 
• Osbourn Park was ranked No. 47
• Freedom ranked No. 148 
• Dumfries' Potomac High took the top spot in the D.C. ranking out of Prince William County schools, ranking No. 40 

Since 1998, Mathews has ranked Washington-area public high schools using the Challenge Index, his measure of how effectively a school prepares its students for college.  

The formula: Divide the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or other college-level tests a school gave in 2010 by the number of graduating seniors. The index is not a measure of the overall quality of the school, but the rating can reveal the level of preparing average students for college.

To see the entire list, click here.

Editor's Note: This piece has been updated to reflect the Virginia and Washington, D.C. area rankings.