High test scores helped put Wyoming’s public schools among the top half in the nation in a new ranking of the country’s best and worst school systems by personal finance site WalletHub.
The personal finance website ranked Wyoming 19th nationally for its schools, a ranking based on both the quality of education and the “safety” of the schools.
The ranking placed Wyoming in 18th place nationally for the quality of its schools, referencing high math and reading test scores.
The study said Wyoming had the fifth-highest scores in the nation in both tests.
The quality of education made up 80% of the rankings and also considered items such as dropout rates, graduation rates, median ACT and SAT scores and teacher to student ratios.
The remaining 20% of the ranking was determined by the safety of schools, where Wyoming placed 29th.
The state did not place either among the top or bottom states on any of the factors considered for safety rankings, which included the percentage of high school students who have been threatened or injured and the rate of bullying.
Utah placed ahead of Wyoming in the survey at 18th place, while Maine followed in 20th.
First place for its quality of schools was claimed by Massachusetts. The study placed New Mexico schools at the bottom of its list.
