Richmond's most competitive public schools, ranked
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Some Richmond district schools are receiving hundreds of applications for a small share of open seats.
Why it matters: Vying for a spot at Richmond's most sought-after schools is becoming increasingly competitive.
Between the lines: Factors such as school culture, leadership, extracurriculars and athletics drive families' interest in specific schools, district director of enrollment Luke Hostetter tells Axios.
The following schools received the most open enrollment applications the 2026-27 school year:
Zoom in: Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts, the city's only charter school, is fully open enrollment. It had 447 applications for the upcoming school year across all grade levels — and 85 open seats.
- Fox, 219 applications for 13 total seats.
- Mary Munford, 215 applications for 18 seats.
- Holton, 100 applications for two seats.
For the middle schools:
- Albert Hill saw 229 applications for 19 seats
- Dogwood, formerly Binford, 221 applications for 40 seats.
- L.M. Brown, 90 applications for 50 seats.
High schools:
- Thomas Jefferson, 237 applications for 65 seats.
- Huguenot High School, 194 applications, despite having no open seats.
- Richmond High School for the Arts, formerly George Wythe, 117 applications for 40 seats.
The intrigue: River City Middle got 60 applications and Huguenot High 194, but neither school had any open seats for the upcoming school year.
Reality check: Some of Richmond's most coveted schools have long been competitive to get into.
Go deeper: Richmond's school lottery is getting more competitive