There are several situations where home schooling might work out, the tendency is that for the most part its used by people who do not seek a 'better' education, but one where they want to 'opt out' of part of the standard course of studies - modern science in particular. And the SAT scores are skewed, as not all home schooled children take the SATs, so there is no baseline to take a comparison from. If that was the criteria, (high SAT scores) then what you want to do is put them in a Catholic school, because Catholic school students have the highest SAT scores of any group (largely because they have 'weeded out' the non-performers before graduation so they don't factor in). Of course, SAT scores are of little use in predicting academic success, which is why many colleges do not even use them, or require them, anymore. When they are used, its in combination with High School GPA, which is done (or should be) in a competitive environment.
The caveat about the USN&WR studies is that not all schools give that information out, so its a number one ranking (given the criteria that USN&WR deems is critical) of the institutions that submitted the information. Though I'm sure its a fine school, and like any college its only as good as the work your are willing to put into it. And looking at those criteria I'm not all that sure they matter equally. My undergrad school has a small theater arts department (it was my minor) and given a lot of criteria, would not make that grade. However, a few years ago a study did find it to be number one in at least one area - the number of graduates working in (some fashion) the entertainment industry. Which, if that is your goal, might be the only thing that really matters. Would you rather have a degree from the number one TA department and be working in a cubicle farm somewhere, or would you rather go to the number fourteen TA department and work in show biz?
STILL.... the topic really revolves around social interaction (and some other things, like facilities, which for Lit is nothing more than a good/bad book and a teacher, but for physics can get pretty expensive) and the things you learn in HS that are not 'course material.' In particular, its the experience itself.
Have you ever hung out with a bunch of people who all do the same thing (job, career, or like they are deadheads or Dylan fanatics) and your listening to them talk, and you understand the words they say (most of them) like, its in a language you speak, but you don't have a clue as to what their talking about? That's what missing high school is like pretty much for the rest of your life, because those years and experiences is one of the few things we all pretty much share. It can exclude you real fast if you a) don't really understand what they are saying in the subtext and context, and b) don't have some dumb/silly/almost amusing story of your own to add.
In the real world, college is pretty much the same deal, you went or you didn't. While everyone fixates on GPA in school, in the real world people don't really ask you about that much. (Same with your major to a large degree.) You went, or you didn't.
But in my two lives, (show biz and academia) what matters is your ability to deal with people, in particular people you might not like, who might not like you, but who you have to work with anyway. Of all the skills one might have, interpersonal communication (the ability to get information and give information, and to get other people to do what you want them to) is the greatest single predictor of success.
One of the reasons that I wind up heading crews is that I deal well with people, who in an average day range from security staff (who might - might - have a high school degree) to highly trained technical staff (geeks and nerds), to highly educated management types (sharks, complete with fin), and with stars who seem to have some major ego issues (Don't you KNOW who I AM?!) ---- "No, should I?" is not the best answer, which is tragic, though its fun to give sometimes anyway). But over the years I have worked with all those types, and I can change gears pretty fast when I have to.
The only way to learn how to deal with people is by doing it, and for teenagers, that tends to be high school.
