This summer, the College Board released national AP test scores, which will affect Redwood’s ranking in U.S. News & World Report’s high school survey. The survey, which was released in April and is based solely on AP test performance, ranked Redwood as the 32nd best public high school in California and 199th in the country.

Of the schools in the Tamalpais Union High School District, Redwood was ranked the highest. Tam High School was next at 44th in the state and 273rd in the nation, and Drake High School was 61st in the state and 334th in the nation.

However, Principal David Sondheim said that although the rankings are based only on AP test results, there are many factors that allowed Redwood students to perform well.

“I think Redwood’s success is a combination of a whole bunch of things,” Sondheim said. “It’s fantastic teachers, fantastic students, a fantastic community and fantastic school district that work together to help all students achieve the goals set for them.”

Redwood’s ranking fell from its 2012 ranking of 25th in the state and 144th in the country, despite the fact that its California API scores increased from 883 to 899.

This is due to the way rankings are calculated, which takes into account only the percentage of students taking and passing AP tests. In 2012, 71 percent of Redwood students took AP tests, and 93 percent of those students passed. Last year, only 63 percent of students took the tests, but 95 percent of those students passed.

Sondheim said he doesn’t believe that this measurement gives the full picture of a school’s performance.

“This is one type of measurement, and I appreciate all different types of metrics to reflect where we’re strong and where we still need to improve, but I would not judge a school on one measurement alone,” he said.

Sondheim also said that the rankings have no bearing on the quality of learning.

“What we’re driven by is what’s our district-wide mission, what are our goals for students, and how can we best help students achieve those goals,” Sondheim said. “And hopefully, by accomplishing that, the measurements they use will reflect that we’re doing a good job.”