Best High Schools in Zip Code 21044

Zip code 21044 in Columbia, Maryland, is home to two public high schools—Atholton High and Wilde Lake High—serving grades 9 through 12 within the highly-rated Howard County Public Schools district.

Atholton High is the standout school in this area, ranking in the top 30% of Maryland high schools (66th out of 227) with a 4-star rating, while Wilde Lake High ranks in the bottom 40% (143rd out of 227) with a 2-star rating. Atholton boasts a 92.3% graduation rate and a low 4.4% dropout rate, compared to Wilde Lake’s 87.7% graduation rate and 8.5% dropout rate. In English Language Arts, Atholton excels with 75.5% of students proficient—well above the district average of 65.9%—while Wilde Lake’s 54% proficiency is below that average. However, both schools struggle with math: only 18.7% of Atholton students and 7.9% of Wilde Lake students are proficient, far below the district average of 42.1%. Chronic absenteeism is a critical issue at Wilde Lake, where 37.5% of students are chronically absent—more than double the district average of 17.4%—compared to Atholton’s 20.7%.

Interestingly, Wilde Lake High receives $3,389 more per student ($21,629 vs. $18,240) and has a lower student-teacher ratio (13.9 vs. 16.7) than Atholton High, yet it underperforms across all metrics. This spending paradox highlights that factors like socioeconomic challenges—Wilde Lake has nearly double the percentage of students receiving free/reduced lunch (42.61% vs. 22.92%)—and high absenteeism are more influential than resources alone. For parents, Atholton offers strong ELA outcomes and a more stable learning environment, while Wilde Lake faces significant hurdles that require targeted interventions, particularly around attendance and math instruction.