BASIS senior Charlie Johnstone, 18, sets a piece of wood afire with his solar thermal system, which he built with about $50 in parts. Johnstone demonstrated the project Friday to students and staff at the school as part of his senior-level work. He's planning to expand the project with a hot-air engine and generator, converting heat into electricity.

Benjie Sanders / arizona daily star

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Tucson's BASIS Charter School is heralded as the top public school in the United States in the new issue of Newsweek magazine.

"Being number one in Newsweek is a stellar accomplishment, especially for our 10th year," said Michael Block, chairman and co-founder of BASIS Schools.

The ranking is based on Newsweek's Challenge Index, which is the number of college-level tests, such as the Advanced Placement exam, International Baccalaureate or Cambridge tests, divided by the number of graduating seniors.

The Newsweek laurels — released online today — mark the third-straight year the magazine has honored the Tucson school with a Top 10 spot. It was ranked sixth and third, respectively, in 2007 and 2006.

In November, BASIS also made U.S. News & World Report's first list of America's top public high schools.

Created in 1998 by Block and his wife, Olga,, BASIS comprises a middle and upper school in Tucson and Scottsdale. The Tucson upper school, ninth to 12th grade, is now across from El Con Mall at 3434 E. Broadway, in what used to be a piano school, Block said. When the program started in Tucson, the Blocks had to rent six classrooms and the auditorium at Temple Emanu-El, 225 N. Country Club Road.

BASIS stands for Builds Academic Success in School, said Olga Block, who also is the executive director.

The upper-school curriculum is organized around Advanced Placement courses.

All students must take at least six AP courses in high school, Michael Block said. The AP exam counts as students' finals, he said.

"We started with this idea of merging European, American and Asian models of education," he said.

It's combining the Old World rigor with the openness of the American system, he explained.

"What this does, it opens up to middle-class kids the world prep-school kids have access to," he said.

As in the European model, BASIS students will have accumulated enough credits to graduate high school after three years, allowing them to go to college early or continue with capstone classes and an off-campus research project in their senior year.

BASIS administrators acknowledge their small charter school has a reputation of being a haven for socially awkward students who excel in math and science.

But that's not the case, said senior Colin Killick, 18.

He joined the school midway through his seventh-grade year, and in eighth grade was cast as Oberon in the school's production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

"After that show, I felt like I fit in," he said.

The students, Killick said, reflect a diversity of interests and subcultures, from soccer fans to "gearheads" to a member of a local death-metal band.

Killick recently completed his senior research project as intern for U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz. On Tuesday, he will give a presentation on his internship. In the fall, he will attend Williams College in Massachusetts, where he plans to major in political economy and minor in theater.

Michael Block said BASIS' achievement isn't just important to students and parents, but to businesses looking to lure employees to Tucson.

Local business leaders have said strong schools and school districts are key to bringing skilled workers to the area.

"My goal is, we help make Tucson attractive to recruit scientists and those in the high-tech sector," Block said. "We'd like to institutionalize this."

Essential to that goal, he said, is securing more funding to attract and retain excellent teachers. More money, he noted, will support the school's growth, which is apparent.

"Last year, we had nearly 1,000 students between our schools in Tucson and Scottsdale," Block said. "We've grown about 20 times since we first opened."