According to the U.S News and World Report, Daniel Pearl Magnet High School is ranked the top nine through 12 school in all of the San Fernando Valley.

“I’m very proud of the work that every stakeholder of Daniel Pearl Magnet High School contributes,” Principal Deb Smith said. “In order to achieve that (ranking) everyone has to achieve.”

Not only is the school ranked number one in the valley, it also ranked in the top 5 percent of the best schools in the country, ranking #845. Statewide the school ranked number 134 and number 16 in the best magnets of California. From the previous years the school has improved by 4 percent beating Granada Hills Charter High School, El Camino Real High School and Birmingham Community Charter High School.

“I wanted to share it with everyone, with the staff, the PTSA, with the Pearls,” Smith said.

To compile the rankings they take into consideration the girls and boys ratio, minority enrollment, amount of students taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes, how well students do on AP exams and other factors. They put these factors into a complex formula and the lesser the number the higher the ranking of the school.

“I think we do a good job because we have a dedicated and rigorous core instruction. We analyze student data and analyze intervention promptly,” Smith said. “We recognize student achievement regularly. But I think the most important thing is because we support our students and their families through personal connections.”