Rivermont Collegiate ranked in the top ten percent of schools in the state whose graduates earned the highest grades in the courses taken freshman year of college, according to the Des Moines Register. In fact, Rivermont Collegiate was the only Quad City high school in Iowa listed in the top ten percent. Analyzing freshman year annual reports from three public universities, the Register found that the rigor of high school courses is a key factor in adequate preparation for college.
Additionally, the analysis reports that unlike Rivermont, large high schools are more likely to fall in the bottom 10 percent of Iowa high schools. Another contributing factor for low-ranking schools is the lack of Advanced Placement courses. Rivermont has the highest availability of AP classes and ranked number one on the Iowa AP Index for 2007 and 2006. It is also the only high school in the Quad Cities to be ranked in the AP Index top five.
"It is both rewarding and reassuring to have our commitment to rigorous academics and small class size confirmed a key factor to success in college," said Rick St. Laurent, Headmaster of Rivermont Collegiate. Indeed, Rivermont's average 9:1 student to teacher ratio and number one ranking on the Iowa AP Index is a testament to Rivermont's dedication to academic excellence.
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