In 2008 William G. Ouchi, author of "Making Schools Work: A Revolutionary Plan to Get Your Children the Education They Need", stated that Lamar was one of the two "elite" public high schools in Houston along with Bellaire High School. In 1979, Al Reinert of "Texas Monthly" stated that Lamar was historically one of the two elite public high schools in all of Texas, along with Highland Park High School near Dallas. Laura Nathan-Garner, author of the second edition of the "Insiders' Guide to Houston" (2012), wrote that Lamar was "considered one of the area's best public high schools."