Who is Renaissance Academy?

Renaissance Academy Charter School is a fully accredited, tuition-free, award-winning, public charter school. Renaissance Academy was incorporated in the fall of 1999 as a Pennsylvania non-profit corporation with the purpose of establishing and operating a non-profit, non-sectarian charter school in the Phoenixville School District in Phoenixville, PA.

In 1999, a group of concerned, energized, local parents came together to draft a Charter Application, which was authorized by the Phoenixville School Board. The goals of the new charter school were to improve and to increase learning opportunities for all pupils; to encourage the use of different and innovative teaching methods; to provide parents and students with expanded choices in the types of educational opportunities available; and to hold schools accountable for meeting measurable academic standards.

Renaissance Academy opened for the 2000-2001 academic school year with a kindergarten through eighth-grade program, serving approximately 560 students. The Academy had its first class of graduating seniors in 2005, with 95% of those students attending college. The school now serves grades K through 12, with approximately 1060 students.

In addition to a college preparatory curriculum, the school also offer sports teams, a band and choral program, and various extra-curricular activities for students*. Admission to the school is open to any resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; however, the majority of our students come from Chester and Montgomery counties. Because Renaissance Academy is a charter school, the per-pupil tax revenues flow from the students' home school districts to the school.

*Visit RA's Student Life Pages

Renaissance Academy Ranks Among the Best PA & National High Schools

2020 US News & World Report Top High School

On April 25, 2020, US News & World Report published its list of 2020 rankings of best high schools. U.S. News evaluated and reviewed more than 24,000 high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine the top public high schools nationally, and then ranked schools by state.

The US News & World Report ranked the Renaissance Academy Charter School (RA) #59 out of 754 Pennsylvania public schools, which makes RA the #2 ranked PA charter school on the list. Nationally, the report ranked Renaissance Academy #1541 out of the 24,000+ public high schools reviewed and assessed.

When ranking high schools, U.S. News bases its high school rankings on a number of factors including overall student performance on state-required tests; how effectively schools educated their disadvantaged students; high school graduation rates (new this year); and how well they prepared students for college based on participation in and performance on AP (Advanced Placement)and IB (International Baccalaureate®) exams.

2019 Best High School

US News & World Report published its list of 2019 rankings of best high schools. U.S. News evaluated more than 28,000 schools to determine the top public high schools nationally, then ranked school by state.

The US News & World Report ranked the Renaissance Academy Charter School (RA) #33 out of 688 Pennsylvania public schools, which makes RA the #1 ranked PA charter school on the list. Nationally, the report ranked Renaissance Academy #1093 out of the 23,265 public high schools reviewed and assessed.