High Schools in Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools

Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools operates three high schools serving grades 9–12 — Prior Lake High School, Prior Lake-Savage Area Alternative Learning Center, and Alternative Learning Center Independent Study — with about 2,965 high school students in total. The district ranks 76th of 458 districts in Minnesota (83rd percentile, 4 stars), and its 94.8% graduation rate and 1.1% dropout rate are well ahead of the state's 84.9% and 4.2%. Enrollment, though, is highly concentrated: 96.3% of high schoolers attend Prior Lake High School, which enrolls 2,856 students, while the two alternative programs serve 75 and 34 students respectively.

Prior Lake High School is the district's anchor. Its 97.6% graduation rate is nearly 13 points above the state, and its 0.5% dropout rate is far below it. Its statewide rank has stayed in the top third across three years, including 72nd of 450 (84th percentile, 4 stars) in 2024–2025 and 142nd of 473 (70th percentile, 4 stars) in 2025–2026. Math and science results are generally above state levels; its All Grades Math (50.8%) sits below the district (60.3%) but above the state (44.9%), and its 11th-grade Math (50.8%) is above the district (48.7%). Reading is more mixed: 45.3% is below the state's All Grades figure (48.6%) yet above the state's 10th-grade figure (42.5%), and the reading exam changed from MCA-III to MCA-IV, so year-to-year reading comparisons should be made cautiously.

The two alternative settings look very different. The Prior Lake-Savage Area Alternative Learning Center has ranked in the bottom 5–14% of Minnesota high schools, with a 70.3% graduation rate, a 6.2% dropout rate, and 0% proficient in Math and 6.7% in Science; its Reading results are suppressed by the state, meaning they are unknown rather than zero. Meanwhile, Alternative Learning Center Independent Study posts a 91.6% graduation rate and a 0.0% dropout rate, but has no test scores or rank history available. Both alternative programs serve higher free/reduced-lunch populations (38.67% and 35.29%) and much smaller classes than Prior Lake High (17.86% free/reduced lunch, 20.6 students per teacher), which is important context when comparing their results.