Central and Centennial High Schools named among best high schools in Illinois

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Chambana Today) — On Thursday, Champaign Unit 4 School District announced that both Central High School and Centennial High School have been recognized on the 2025-26 U.S. News & World Report list of “Best High Schools.”

Central earned a spot at #89 at out of 715 Illinois public high schools, while Centennial was ranked #137. Within the Champaign metro area, Central is ranked third, and Centennial is ranked fifth out of 16 schools.

Among Big 12 Conference schools, only one high school ranked higher than Central. These rankings are based on a variety of factors, including student performance on state assessment, college readiness, and graduation rates.

You can explore the full list and learn more about the methodology on the U.S. News & World Report website.