Best High Schools in Ruston, LA

Ruston, Louisiana is home to a single high school, Ruston High School, which serves grades 9 through 12 and is part of the highly-rated Lincoln Parish school district, ranked 22nd out of 116 districts in the state with a 4-star rating.

For parents, the most important takeaway is that Ruston High School is a strong performer that consistently beats state averages on nearly every key metric. The school boasts an impressive 93.9% graduation rate, far above the state average of 85.0%, and an exceptionally low dropout rate of just 0.3%—ten times lower than the state average. Chronic absenteeism is also below the state norm at 15.9%. Academically, the school outperforms Louisiana averages in core subjects like English II (74% vs. 67%), Biology (68% vs. 60%), Geometry (67% vs. 57%), and U.S. History (65% vs. 55%). These achievements are particularly notable given that 44.8% of the student body is economically disadvantaged, suggesting effective support systems are in place. The student-teacher ratio of 12.5:1 also points to smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.

However, there are a few areas for parents to note. While Ruston High excels compared to the state, it sometimes falls slightly behind its own district averages on test scores, such as in Algebra I (65% vs. district 74%) and English I (67% vs. district 72%). Additionally, the school's state ranking has declined slightly over the past three years, from the 74th percentile to the 67th percentile, even as its absolute performance remains strong—indicating that other schools across Louisiana are improving at a faster pace. There is also some volatility in core subjects, with Algebra I and English I scores dropping between the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, which is worth monitoring.