Best High Schools in Zip Code 44035

ZIP code 44035, covering Elyria, Ohio, has two high schools, both serving grades 9–12: Elyria High School and Black River Career Prep High School. Together they enroll 1,722 students; Elyria High School is much larger, with 1,540 students versus 182 at Black River Career Prep High School. Families comparing them will find very different outcomes in the same ZIP code.

Elyria High School is the stronger option on the shared measures. Its 2025–2026 graduation rate is 90.2%, and its chronic absenteeism rate is 39.0%. Its student-teacher ratio is 12.7, and its 2025–2026 rank is 647 of 795, in the 19th percentile with 1 star. It still trails Ohio averages in every reported End-of-Course subject. In 2024–2025, it averaged 44.6% proficient versus the state’s 62.0%. Math is the clearest weakness: Geometry was 16.4% and Algebra I was 29.4% in 2025–2026, both far below state averages. English II improved by 11.7 points, from 42.0% to 53.7%, but remained below the state.

Black River Career Prep High School faces much more acute challenges. Its most recent rank is 812 of 855 in 2024–2025, in the 5th percentile with 0 stars. Its graduation rate is 39.7%, and its chronic absenteeism rate is 100.0%. Its student-teacher ratio is 20.2, about 59% higher than Elyria’s. In 2024–2025, it averaged 18.2% proficient, with Geometry at 0%, Biology at 5%, and Algebra I at 9.5%; its best subject, American History, was 40.9%, still 30.3 points below the state. Neither school reports free/reduced lunch data, and the school has no spending data, so comparisons are limited.