–U.S. News & World Report ranked Diamond Bar and Walnut High Schools among the best in the nation in its 2014 Best High Schools report.  Both schools earned gold medals in the report issued on April 21. Only 500 public high schools in the nation achieved the top award.

Nearly 600 schools in California are ranked Best High Schools. Diamond Bar High ranked 40^th in the state and 230^th in the nation.  Walnut High ranked 84^th in the state and 418^th in the nation.  According to the report, the publication collected data from more than 19,400 public high schools in 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Schools are awarded gold, silver or bronze medals based on the performance on state assessments and how well they prepare students for college. In the 2014 national rankings, 1,519 public high schools received silver medals and 2,688 schools received bronze medals.

A three-step process determined the Best High Schools. The first two steps ensured that the schools serve all of their students well, using performance on state proficiency tests as the benchmarks.

For those schools that made it past the first two steps, a third step assessed the degree to which schools prepare students for college-level work.

For a full report, please visit www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools.