panitanphoto // Shutterstock
1 / 23#23. Connely International Academy
- School type: Private School
- Location: Palmyra, NE
- Enrollment: 15 (4:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: unavailable
Best high schools in the Lincoln metro area
According to the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics, 15.5 million students attend public high school every year, and more than 3.76 million are expected to graduate in 2025. However, those students have a wide variety of experiences over the course of their high school careers.
To start, issues surrounding equal educational access persist throughout the United States. A January 2025 report published in Frontiers found that disparities across socioeconomic status, race, gender, and geography can lead to negative outcomes and the perpetuation of systemic barriers.
Outside of these issues, students also pursue many different paths within high school. Roughly 8.3 million high schoolers attend educational programs to prepare for careers in fields like transportation, landscaping, and culinary arts. Meanwhile, nearly 2.5 million are in dual enrollment programs that offer high school and college credit for the same course, allowing students to get a jump on higher education degrees.
Dual enrollment programs are particularly useful considering that more than 3 in 5 (61%) high school graduates head to college, per a 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics report. Unfortunately, high school doesn't always guarantee college success. In 2024, the average SAT score declined for the third straight year, and nearly 2 in 5 (39%) test-takers met or exceeded the test's college readiness benchmarks. ACT scores are also on the decline year over year, down to 19.4 out of 36, and just 3 in 10 students met at least three of the ACT's college readiness benchmarks.
With that said, attending a quality high school will typically help prepare students for their next steps in life, whether that's college, technical school, or going straight into the workforce. Stacker compiled a list of the best high schools in the Lincoln metro area using data from Niche, which uses seven weighted factors for its rankings. Most of the score is based on academics, but other factors include culture and diversity; sports; clubs and activities; resources; and surveys of parents, teachers, and students.
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GagliardiPhotography // Shutterstock
2 / 23#22. Berniklau Education Solutions Team
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 18 (3:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: unavailable
SEALANDSKYPHOTO // Shutterstock
3 / 23#21. Acton Academy Lincoln
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 91 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: unavailable
Mircea Moira // Shutterstock
4 / 23#20. NORTHWEST HIGH SCHOOL
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 499 (12:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: unavailable
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
5 / 23#19. Dorchester High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Dorchester Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 91 (9:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: C+
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Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
6 / 23#18. Lincoln Northeast High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 1,812 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: C+
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
7 / 23#17. Waverly High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Waverly School District, NE
- Enrollment: 682 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B minus
maroke // Shutterstock
8 / 23#16. Secondary School at Raymond
- School type: Public School
- Location: Raymond Central Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 361 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B minus
Achira22 // Shutterstock
9 / 23#15. Norris High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Norris School District, NE
- Enrollment: 757 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B minus
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
10 / 23#14. Crete High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Crete Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 690 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B minus
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Anna Jurkovska // Shutterstock
11 / 23#13. Lincoln Lutheran Middle/High School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 386 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
LightField Studios // Shutterstock
12 / 23#12. Junior/Senior High School at Palmyra
- School type: Public School
- Location: Palmyra School District, NE
- Enrollment: 163 (8:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
13 / 23#11. Malcolm Junior/Senior High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Malcolm Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 308 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
14 / 23#10. North Star High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 2,072 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
15 / 23#9. Lincoln Christian School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 700 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
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Roman Kosolapov // Shutterstock
16 / 23#8. Lincoln High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 2,196 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
maroke // Shutterstock
17 / 23#7. Milford High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Milford Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 358 (12:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
sirtravelalot // Shutterstock
18 / 23#6. Parkview Christian Schools
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 141 (9:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
Daniel Hoz // Shutterstock
19 / 23#5. Seward High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Seward Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 501 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
20 / 23#4. Pius X High School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Lincoln, NE
- Enrollment: 1,087 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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Studio KIWI // Shutterstock
21 / 23#3. Lincoln Southeast High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 1,929 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
22 / 23#2. Southwest High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 2,171 (20:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
LStockStudio // Shutterstock
23 / 23#1. Lincoln East High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Lincoln Public Schools, NE
- Enrollment: 2,268 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
This story features data reporting by Rob Powell, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 97 metros.
