FROM STAFF REPORTS

NORTH SHELBY — Oak Mountain High School was recently named one of the top high schools in the state and nation for preparing its students for college, according to the 2011 Washington Post Challenge Index.

Oak Mountain was among only 12 schools in Alabama to make the national list, according to a Shelby County Schools press release.

The challenge index uses a formula to measure how effectively a school prepares its students for college. The index score of each school is found by diving the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or other college-level tests a school gave in 2010 by the number of graduating seniors.

Oak Mountain High School received a score of 2.192, ranking the school 663rd in the nation and fifth in the state, according to the press release.

The Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School was named the number one ranked school in Alabama. Loveless Academic Magnet Program in Montgomery, Mountain Brook High School and Homewood High School are the other schools ranked in the top five in Alabama.

While the score does not determine the overall quality of the school, the rating can reveal the level of a high school’s commitment to preparing average students for college, according to the Washington Post.