Malta Development Blog

Going to Ballston Spa High School is not a laid back ‘spa’ like school, as their name would suggest. Rather named for the town it is located, Ballston Spa High School is a public school located in Ballston Spa, New York.  Recently named one of the 2,000 best high schools in America, they are known for their high graduation rates, participation in the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs, and above average SAT and ACT scores.

A part of the Ballston Spa Central School District, Ballston Spa High School services the towns of Ballston, Milton, and Malta in Saratoga County, NY. With a newly built building, the school has an average graduating class between 300-400 and a total student population of around 1,400.

As of 2013, Ballston Spa High School was named one of the top 2,000 high schools in America by Newsweek. The parameters take into account graduation rate (25%), college acceptance rate (25%), advanced placements test taken per student (25%), average SAT/ACT scores (10%), average AP/IB/AICE score (10%), and percent of students enrolled in at least AP/IB/AICE course (5%).

Their average graduation rate is 84% with 90% of those individuals college bound; in addition, the average AP score is a remarkable 3.5 and 1556 SAT score. The combined scores rank them in the top 60 percent of schools on the Newsweek list and the leading school in the Capital District.

It is in the advanced coursework arena that Ballston Spa truly excels, with their notable Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs. The Advanced Placement program offers college level classes and exams to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Covering most subjects, from English Language, European History, to Statistics and Macroeconomics, students complete a year of college level coursework, and then take a rigorous exam in the spring. AP tests are scored on a scale from 1-5; with students who score above a three receiving college credit. Of the 399 AP test recently taken by Ballston Spa students, 75% of the tests received a score of three or higher. This is a remarkable statistic when considering that the passing rate for the entire state of New York is 26.5% and has not gone unnoticed. Ballston Spa High School was recently listed on the College Board’s AP Achievement List, the only school in the region to be mentioned.

The IB program is exceptional as well. Providing a spectrum of courses including, but not limited to, IB English Language and Literature, IB Environmental Systems and Societies, and IB Theatre; the program requires students to conduct individual research projects and to engage in a series of creative or service related endeavors. The IB student is assessed in the spring via three different sets of tests on a scale of 1-7, with a seven equaling an A+, a six equaling an A, and so forth.  The goal of the IB program is to develop students to be global citizens and life long learners.

With its thriving advanced coursework program and a wide variety of extra curricular activities, Ballston Spa High School is an award willing academic institution that not only prepares students to be successful in college, but also to be self-motivated pursuers of knowledge.