Wissahickon ranks 12th in Philadelphia area in Niche 2027 ratings

Wissahickon School District placed 12th among 127 school districts in the Philadelphia region in Niche's 2027 Best School Districts rankings, making it the fourth-highest-rated district in Montgomery County.

Around Ambler reported the results on Wednesday, Oct. 7. The district serves 5,187 students across six schools, and the placement puts Wissahickon ahead of every neighboring district except three Montgomery County peers: Lower Merion, Colonial and Upper Dublin.

Colonial, which serves Plymouth and Whitemarsh townships, ranked fourth in the Philadelphia area and second in Montgomery County as we reported Oct. 7. Upper Dublin came in 15th regionally and fifth in the county.

Here is how nearby districts compared:

Norristown Area School District and North Penn did not receive a ranking. Niche ranked 66 of the 127 districts it evaluated.

On its district profile page, Niche gives Wissahickon A+ grades in academics, teachers and college prep, along with an A in administration. The district scored a C in resources and facilities.

This year, Niche dropped SAT and ACT scores from its formula to reflect what the site called a de-emphasis on standardized testing in college admissions. The ranking methodology weighs state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, teacher quality and district ratings drawn from U.S. Department of Education data and parent and student reviews.

According to U.S. News data, 81% of Wissahickon students tested at or above proficient in reading and 74% reached that level in math on state assessments. Sixteen Montgomery County districts earned at least an A-minus grade in the Niche rankings, according to a Patch report on Colonial's results.

The full Philadelphia-area list is available on Niche's rankings page.