ALPENA — U.S. News & World Report released its state high school rankings on Tuesday, with a few Northeast Michigan schools ranking in the top half of Michigan schools.

The report — which is based off of college readiness, math and reading performance, underserved student performance, college curriculum, and graduation rates — has Alpena High School ranked at 172, out of about 600 schools.

The report gave scores for each school, with Alpena receiving a 72.47 out of a possible 100. The report showed that, at the school, 33% of students take at least one Advanced Placement exam, 61% of students pass an Advanced Placement exam, 33% of students are proficient in math, 67% of students are proficient in reading, and 92% of students graduate.

Alpena High Principal Thomas Berriman said it’s respectful to be ranked so high.

“It just speaks to the top level staff that we have, the types of kids we have, and the type of community we have,” Berriman said Tuesday. “The community has challenges, but we do a really good job of overcoming them.”

Berriman said the ranking is a validation of what everyone does every day at the high school.

“It’s good that the students and staff get recognition for their hard work,” he said.

An advantage of being in Northeast Michigan, Berriman said, is that there are more options available for students. Students are able to take Advanced Placement courses, dual enrollment courses, and participate in the Early College and Career and Technical Education programs. They are able to broaden their horizon and be prepared for life after high school.

The report has Onaway Senior High School ranked 354 and Atlanta High School ranked at 358.

Rogers City High School, Posen Consolidated High School, Hillman High School, and Alcona High School were all ranked 457 or below. Schools ranked between 457 and 650 were put into a single category and do not have individual rankings.

The top five high schools in the state ranking were International Academy of Macomb in Clinton Township, City Middle/High School in Grand Rapids, International Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Washtenaw International High School in Ypsilanti, and Rochester Adams High School in Rochester Hills.

Julie Goldberg can be reached at 989-358-5688 or jgoldberg@thealpenanews.com. Follow her on Twitter @jkgoldberg12.