NATIONAL TOP 100

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October 29, 2024

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here. 

Notre Dame Prep's upper school named one of the top high schools in the U.S. and the only Michigan school on the National Speech & Debate Association's Top 100 list.

This month the National Speech & Debate Association announced the Top 100 Schools for the 2023-2024 school year and Notre Dame Prep's upper school debate program earned entry in the annual designation. NDP is the only school in Michigan on the Top 100 list. 

Each year, the 100 school chapters with the largest number of new degrees in the National Forensic League Honor Society receive the Top 100 Schools designation. 

According to NSDA, as member schools earn points they also earn new Honor Society degrees. Degrees recognize progress, provide motivation and offer distinction. 

“Our Top 100 schools show an incredible commitment to growing speech and debate,” said J. Scott Wunn, executive director of the National Speech & Debate Association. “These programs demonstrate outstanding commitment to the values of integrity, humility, respect, leadership and service that are central to our Code of Honor.” 

Dr. LeAnne Schmidt, Notre Dame Prep's longtime debate/forensics coach and a language arts and U.S. history teacher in the middle school, said she's very appreciative of this most recent honor from NSDA. She also points out that NDP's middle school debate program continues to be raked No. 1.

"While we are pleased that NDP upper was ranked as the top school in the State of Michigan and one of the top 100 schools in the nation, our program isn't about numbers; it's about the students," she said. "Creating opportunities through the hard work at the many debates or performances throughout the season are some of the same experiences that will help them represent themselves well with college reps and hiring professionals."

She said down the road, some students may use what they've learned in many other ways, including in the courtroom or in defending college academic work. 

"Some will use it in sales, some will speak and bring people to Christ," she said. "Whatever it is, I'm just glad that we may be the only school in the country that makes it available to all of the student body, whether it's through Lincoln-Douglas debate, public forum debate, Congressional debate, public address, Model United Nations, Michigan Youth in Government, mock trial, and interpretation performances. I like to say we run a 'debate, speech and civics buffet' here at NDP and everyone is welcome."

Top 100 schools listed alphabetically (school, state, and strength): 

Aberdeen Central High School, SD - 657    
American Heritage School, FL - 421    
Apple Valley High School, MN - 354    
Archbishop Mitty High School, CA - 551    
Ardrey Kell High School, NC - 352    
Arizona College Prep High School, AZ - 419    
BASIS Peoria, AZ - 445    
BC Academy, Canada - 901    
Bellarmine College Prep, CA - 635    
Blue Springs High School, MO - 465    
Blue Springs South High School, MO - 397    
Blue Valley High School, KS - 346    
Bolivar High School, MO - 363    
Bozeman High School, MT - 390    
Cabot High School, AR - 533    
Carlsbad High School, CA - 360    
Cary Academy, NC - 501    
Central High School, MO - 507    
Cherry Creek High School, CO - 724    
Cheyenne East High School, WY - 511    
Claremont High School, CA - 365    
Colegio Bilingue New Horizons, Dominican Republic - 388    
College Prep, CA - 357    
Coppell High School, TX - 462    
CR North High School, PA - 434    
Desert Vista High School, AZ - 394    
Dougherty Valley High School, CA -  401    
Downers Grove South High School, IL - 343    
Durham Academy, NC - 384    
Eagan High School, MN -  635    
Eastview High School, MN - 777    
Eden Prairie High School, MN - 407    
Edina High School, MN - 507    
Flathead High School, MT - 367    
Flintridge Preparatory School, CA - 394    
Flower Mound High School, TX - 684    
Gabrielino High School, CA - 704    
George Washington High School, CO - 801    
Glacier High School, MT - 359    
Gloria Deo Academy, MO - 358    
Greenhill School, TX - 405    
Hawken School, OH - 412    
Highland High School, ID - 504    
Hinsdale Central High School, IL - 391    
Interlake High School, WA - 355    
James Logan High School, CA - 479    
Jefferson City High School, MO - 465    
Jenks High School, OK - 353    
Lake Highland Preparatory School, FL - 507    
Lakeville North High School, MN - 394    
Lansing High School, KS - 338    
Lawrence Free State High School, KS - 404    
Lee's Summit North, MO - 382    
Lee's Summit West High School, MO - 352    
Leland High School, CA - 861    
Lexington High School, MA - 602    
Liberty North High School, MO - 446    
Liberty Sr. High School, MO - 430    
Lincoln East High School, NE - 557    
Lincoln Southwest High School, NE - 369    
Los Altos High School, CA - 361    
Marist School, GA - 381    
Midland Legacy High School, TX - 427    
Millard North High School, NE - 781    
Monta Vista High School, CA - 372    
Munster High School, IN - 415    
Newton South High School, MA - 518    
North Allegheny High School, PA - 521    
Notre Dame Preparatory School, MI - 349    
Olathe Northwest High School, KS - 335    
Palo Alto Senior High School, CA - 527    
Pembroke Hill School, MO - 702    
Pennsbury High School, PA - 350    
Perry High School, OH - 436    
Pittsburg High School, KS - 370    
Plano East Senior High School, TX - 428    
Ransom Everglades School, FL - 571    
Regis High School,  NY - 901    
Ridge High School, NJ - 539    
Rigby High School, ID - 380    
Riverside High School, SC - 354    
Rockhurst High School, MO- 358    
Seven Lakes High School, TX - 597    
Shawnee Mission East High School, KS - 738    
Shrewsbury High School, MA - 415    
Solon High School, OH - 409    
Stephen F. Austin High School, TX - 373    
Strake Jesuit College Preparatory, TX - 388    
Summit High School, NJ - 351    
Syosset High School, NY - 437    
Taipei American School, Taiwan - 408    
The Bronx High School Of Science, NY - 1,292    
The Harker School, CA - 380    
The Potomac School, VA - 354    
Topeka High School, KS - 460    
Upper St Clair High School, PA - 443    
Vancouver Debate Academy, Canada - 749    
Washburn Rural High School, KS -  640    
Westwood High School, TX - 574    
Willard High School, MO - 390

About the National Speech & Debate Association
The National Speech & Debate Association is the authority on public speaking and debate in the United States. The Association builds the infrastructure for speech and debate competitions around the world by providing topics, educational resources, and training for students and coaches. For 100 years, the National Speech & Debate Association has built a platform for youth voices that culminates in the National Tournament, the largest academic competition in the world. For more information, visit www.speechanddebate.org.

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

About Notre Dame Preparatory School
"At Notre Dame Prep, we inspire our students to become the best versions of themselves. We challenge them through an experience of academic excellence, focused on active, project-based learning. We invite them to explore a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. We guide them as they grow in spirituality within a community strong in its Catholic and Marist identity."

Notre Dame Preparatory School is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame Prep's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDP is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School, visit the school’s home page at www.ndprep.org.