The Montgomery Area Junior/Senior has placed at 85th out of 672 schools in the state for the 2025-26 school year, according to rankings released by U.S. News & World Report, district Superintendent Joseph Stoudt, announced during the monthly meeting Tuesday night.

“In the nation, we were ranked 2,203rd out of 17,901 schools in the nation,” he added.

The rankings place the district in the Top 15% nationally, as well as statewide.

“It’s an incredible accomplishment that speaks volumes to the programs that we offer to our teachers and also to the kids, because when you’re looking at rankings like this, they approach the assessment and things that matter seriously, and our scores reflect that,” Stoudt said.

“In all the years I’ve checked it, we’ve never cracked the top 100, so to be 85th is quite an accomplishment,” he said.

A number of agenda items were also approved by the board, including a memorandum of understanding for the Master of Public Health Program Applied Practice Experience with Chamberlin University; the purchase of 40 Melody Music Chairs from W.B. Mason Interiors, in the amount of $3,797.04; an updated memorandum of understanding with state police; and a quote from Sportsman’s for Varsity Baseball Uniforms, in the amount of $3,403.

In staffing issues, the board approved Perry Bullis as a substitute bus driver; Brock Hepler as a seventh and eighth grade special education paraprofessional; Sharon Sullivan as an emotional support paraprofessional; Christa Gardner as a part-time cafeteria worker; and a number of athletic volunteers and coaches with stipends ranging from $2,300 to $4,211.37.

The next school board meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 18.