Eight Baltimore County high schools listed among the nation?s top 1,200 by a recent Newsweek study were presented with framed covers of the magazine?s mid-May issue Wednesday by County Executive James Smith in a small ceremony Thursday in Towson.

Carver Center for Arts and Technology;Catonsville; Dulaney; Franklin; Hereford; Loch Raven; Pikesville; and Towson high schools were selected according to the magazine?s challenge index, based on a ratio of the number of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests taken by all students at the school divided by the number of graduating seniors.