INDEPENDENCE, Va. – Two Southwest Virginia high schools are among the best in the country when it comes to teaching students how to manage their money.
Narrows High School ranked No. 7 and Grayson County High School ranked No. 17 on WISE’s 2026 Top 100 list. WISE is an educational nonprofit focused on financial literacy. The list ranks the top 100 schools in its national network based on student performance scores.
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Virginia has required high school students to complete a personal finance course before graduating since 2011.
Grayson County’s Ranking Is a Program Milestone
For Grayson County High School Personal Finance Instructor Chad Wright, breaking into the top 20 represents years of work.
“We’ve been on this list for several years, as you can see with the banners,” Wright said. “But to get up into the top 30 or to get on the front page of the list was, I mean, it’s a big deal.”
Wright said the school’s No. 17 ranking was driven by strong student performance in the previous school year.
“We were number 17 in the country. And that’s based off of last year’s score rates,” he said. “I think it was 90-plus percent passing rate, which allowed us to achieve that mark.”
Students Learn by Doing — Not Just by Reading
Wright said his approach goes beyond traditional classroom instruction. Students use a financial simulator that puts them through real-life money scenarios.
“There’s a lot of real-life situations, and the kids here get a lot of hands-on with that,” Wright said. “They learn what it’s like to buy a house. They learn what it’s like to buy a car or lease a car. They go through the different options.”
Grayson County Public Schools Superintendent Kelly Wilmore said the hands-on approach is what makes the program stand out.
“It’s always very interactive the way he makes it,” Wilmore said. “And most of all, they learn a life skill, and it’s a huge life skill for most people.”
A Graduate Puts the Lessons to Work
The real-world value of the program came into focus through Grayson County graduate Andrew Schaffner, who is now playing minor league baseball.
Wilmore said Schaffner’s financial education gave him an edge when it came time to negotiate his signing bonus.
“Andrew obviously did very well understanding finances and understanding his value,” Wilmore said. “Because if you go look at the signing bonuses that folks got for that draft, the two or three in front of him and all four behind him were significantly lower.”
Wright said Schaffner came back and shared how the class prepared him for life after school.
“He came back and he said that this class prepared him for what he was gonna see — looking at rent, looking at what to do with his paycheck when he gets it,” Wright said. “So it’s good to see that and it’s good to hear that.”
Narrows High School Also Lands in the Top 10
Narrows High School earned the No. 7 spot on the WISE Top 100 list for 2026. WSLS reached out to Narrows High School for comment, but school officials were unavailable due to their graduation ceremony.