Community recognition highlights a different kind of Catholic high school where students are challenged academically, known personally, formed in faith, and prepared for what comes next.
John Paul II High School has been named Best School in Star Local Media’s 2026 Best of Plano Readers’ Choice Awards.
For the JPII community, the recognition is worth celebrating. It reflects the confidence of people who know Plano and have experienced its schools, organizations and institutions.
For families choosing a high school, the recognition also points to a larger question: What makes a school worthy of that confidence?
At JPII, the answer begins with an intentional student experience.
Different by Design. Catholic by Choice.
John Paul II High School is the only Catholic high school in Collin County. Catholic identity is the foundation of the student experience, shaping how students learn, lead, serve, and grow.
JPII is also a coeducational Catholic high school. Young women and young men learn, lead, compete, collaborate and grow together. They learn from one another and prepare for a world in which they will work together toward shared goals.
It is a different kind of Catholic high school:
Coeducational. Faith-filled. Student-Centered.
Different by Design. Academically.
The Best of Plano recognition comes alongside strong academic and college outcomes.
Members of the Class of 2026 received admission offers from more than 220 institutions and earned more than $29 million in college merit scholarships.
Ten seniors were recognized as Commended Students in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program. JPII also earned Platinum recognition on the AP School Honor Roll.
Those results provide evidence of something larger. JPII’s academic experience challenges students to discover what they are capable of and inspires them to go further.
College preparation is about more than admission. Students develop critical thinking, communication, independence, responsibility, and the ability to respond when the work becomes difficult.
Different by Design. Known.
Families are not simply choosing courses, activities or a college acceptance list. They are choosing the community in which their student will spend four formative years.
At JPII, students grow in a community that knows and believes in them while challenging them to become who they are called to be. Being student-centered does not mean lowering expectations. It means combining high expectations with relationships, support, and accountability.
That approach connects directly to JPII’s mission: to develop leaders who are critical thinkers and effective communicators, committed to service and rooted in faith.
Recognition as Star Local Media’s 2026 Best of Plano Best School celebrates the students, faculty, families and community members who bring that mission to life every day.
For prospective families, it is also an invitation to experience JPII firsthand.
Visit campus, meet students and faculty, explore the curriculum and discover a different kind of Catholic high school.
Choose JPII. Choose a different kind of Catholic high school.
Seek to Serve.
About John Paul II High School
John Paul II High School (JPII) is a coeducational, college-preparatory private Catholic high school in Plano, Texas, and the only Catholic high school in Collin County. Different by Design and Catholic by Choice, JPII combines rigorous college preparation with a faith-filled, student-centered experience where students are known, challenged, and given meaningful opportunities to grow academically, pursue their interests, lead, and serve.