Public + private high schools, every state.
1,167
high schools (public + private)
771
public (655 districts)
396
private (NCES PSS)
132,951
public grade‑12 students (seniors, latest year)

PA public HS enrollment trend

Across the 86,705 students enrolled in PA brick-and-mortar public high schools in 2021, the state grew +1.4% by 2024 (87,900 students, +1,195 net). That's the demographic tide every individual school is fighting or riding.

Charter share of public HS enrollment (latest year): 11.8% (10,336 of 87,900 students). Virtual / nonclassroom-based schools excluded.

🗺️ State context · NAEP 2024

How does PA compare nationally?

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the only test given the same way to students in every state — making it the benchmark for state-to-state academic comparison. Below, this state's 8th-grade averages and where it sits on the 50-state distribution.

8th-grade math
277
+4 vs national avg (273)
8th-grade reading
264
+4 vs national avg (260)
national avg PA Math → Reading → 260 290 245 275

Each dot is one state's 2024 NAEP 8th-grade averages. PA is highlighted in gold. Dashed lines mark national averages — being upper-right of both = above national in both subjects. Source: NAEP State Snapshot Reports. NAEP doesn't produce per-school scores — this is state-level context.

Where the students are

Top 10 cities by public-HS enrollment

Philadelphia 17 HS 7,446
Pittsburgh 8 HS 5,729
Drexel Hill 1 HS 4,187
Lansdale 2 HS 3,197
Abington 1 HS 2,692
Exton 2 HS 2,344
West Lawn 1 HS 2,133
Butler 1 HS 1,956
Folsom 1 HS 1,825
Collegeville 2 HS 1,617

School-size distribution

Public, classroom-based · grades 9–12, latest year

Fastest-growing high schools
public, classroom-based · grade 9–12 · 2021→2024
YouthBuild Phila CS
Youth Build Phila CS
169→271 +60.4%
MaST Community CS II
MaST Community CS II
243→367 +51.0%
Belmont CS
Belmont CS
192→276 +43.8%
Abington SHS
Abington SD
1,954→2,692 +37.8%
York Academy Regional CS
York Academy Regional CS
154→211 +37.0%
Butler Area SHS
Butler Area SD
1,480→1,956 +32.2%
STEM at Showalter
Chester-Upland SD
370→477 +28.9%
Jefferson County-DuBois Area Vocational-Technical School
Jefferson County-DuBois Area Vocational-Technical School
468→587 +25.4%
Connellsville Area Career & Technical Center
Connellsville Area Career & Technical Center
492→592 +20.3%
Mastery CHS-Lenfest Campus
Mastery CHS-Lenfest Campus
365→437 +19.7%
Fastest-shrinking high schools
public, classroom-based · grade 9–12 · 2021→2024
Propel CS-Braddock Hills
Propel CS-Braddock Hills
297→216 -27.3%
Northern Cambria HS
Northern Cambria SD
341→262 -23.2%
Coudersport Area JSHS
Coudersport Area SD
201→161 -19.9%
Kane Area HS
Kane Area SD
347→281 -19.0%
Sto-Rox JSHS
Sto-Rox SD
365→302 -17.3%
Bloomsburg Area HS
Bloomsburg Area SD
435→362 -16.8%
Saegertown JSHS
Penncrest SD
322→274 -14.9%
South Side HS
South Side Area SD
317→272 -14.2%
Johnsonburg Area HS
Johnsonburg Area SD
185→160 -13.5%
United JSHS
United SD
306→267 -12.7%

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