Uplift North Hills Preparatory
Public charter school in Texas, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Uplift North Hills Preparatory is a public charter school, a branch school of Uplift Education, the school located in Irving, Texas. The school is an International Baccalaureate school, and features the Panther as the school mascot. The school was established in 1997 and is critically regarded as a top school within the DFW area, and within the state of Texas.
| Uplift North Hills Preparatory | |
|---|---|
| |
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| Location | |
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606 E. Royal Lane, Irving, TX 75039 32.8947°N 96.9339°W | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public charter school |
| Motto | "Raising the expectations for education" |
| Established | 2024 |
NCES School ID | 480003012221[1] |
Principal | Heather Periera |
| Grades | 8-10 |
| Enrollment | 513 (2023–2024) |
| • Grade 9 | 145 |
| • Grade 10 | 134 |
| • Grade 11 | 113 |
| • Grade 12 | 121 |
Student to teacher ratio | 15.1[2] |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colors | Green and Gold |
Athletics conference | UIL Class 4A |
| Mascot | Panther |
| Rival | Ranchview High School |
| Affiliation | Uplift Education |
| Website | Uplift North Hills |
History
North Hills Preparatory was first established in 1997; Uplift North Hills is the oldest school in the Uplift network and is on the grounds of a former equestrian center.[3] It was the first school in the network to award an International Baccalaureate Diploma.[4] North Hills, including the other Uplift Education school branches received the National Recognition by Jay Matthews Challenge Index.[5] North Hills is a uniform school and is tuition-free. Throughout their history, it has served over 1600 students.[3]
Student body
According to the student demographics, North Hills Preparatory is predominantly Asian, with the percentage being 64.3%, 19.7% of the students are Hispanic, 7.8% of the students are white, 5.5% being black, 2.5% of the students being two or more races, and lastly, 0.2% of the students being Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander.[6]
Academics
In terms of academics, North Hills's math proficiency sits at 84%, while their reading subject sits slightly above math, sitting at 87%, in their district, their math scores sit at a wavering 35%, and 44% state-wide, for reading, it sits higher at 45% in their district, while state-wide, it sits at 51%. There are a total of 33 full-time teachers, with 100% of them being fully certified to teach. There are two full-time counselors.[2]
Athletics
North Hills sports includes track & field,[7] Varsity and Junior Varsity basketball, tennis, cross country,[8] and girls' volleyball. Outside of those three sports, North Hills also offers boys' Varsity golf and co-ed soccer.[9] All North Hills sports teams are within District 10-4A.[10][11][12] North Hills used to have a softball and swimming team, but both teams retired, and it's no longer a sport available for students of the school.
Tennis
During the 2006-2007 tennis season, North Hills scholar Stanley Siu made it to the 2006-2007 2A Boys Singles Tennis State Finals, where he would ultimately end up losing to Austin Klores of Franklin High.[13] During the 2018-2019 tennis season, North Hills scholar Siddhartha Movva won the 2018-2019 4A Boys Singles Tennis State Brackets, thus leading him to become the 4A Boys Singles State Champion.[14] Additionally, Movva also made his way to the 2020-2021 4A Boys Singles Tennis State Finals, where he would ultimately end up losing to Bryce Ware, of Canyon High.[15]
School Clubs
Robotics
North Hills has a robotics team that competes in MIT Robotics.[16]
Science Fair
The Uplift organization hosts an annual science fair every year, titled the STARS Program, which is hosted by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Over the years, North Hills has had frequent recipients of the STARS award, with its most recent one being in 2025, where the winner of the award was senior, Sahad Valiani.[17][18]
Critical reception
In 2013, Uplift North Hills was ranked the eighth best school throughout the entire state of Texas.[19] In 2025, according to U.S. News, Uplift North Hills was ranked as the 26th best school throughout the state.[20] According to Niche, Uplift North Hills was the sixth-ranked public school throughout all of DFW.[21] Uplift North Hills was also ranked as one of the best schools in all of North Texas, despite having low-income.[22] In 2023, Uplift North Hills was ranked at #32 in Texas and #180 nationally.[23][24]
