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Indiana high school graduation rates released
About three-quarters (76.5 percent) of Indiana students earned a high school diploma within four years in 2007, a 0.4 percent increase over the year before. In addition to the 11.9 percent of reported high school dropouts/undetermined, non-graduates include students who earned a GED (2.7 percent), a special education certificate (1.0 percent), a non-diploma course completion certificate (0.6 percent) and those still enrolled in school (7.3 percent). “The stark reality that not all high school students graduate is by no means a new concern in America, but earning a diploma has never been more critical to future opportunities than it is today,” said Dr. Suellen Reed, Superintendent of Public Instruction. “Despite signs of improvement in some communities, far too many Hoosier students leave school lacking this basic credential.” Graduation rates reflect larger issues Though the majority (66 percent) of public high schools met or exceeded the state average in 2007, graduation rates continue to vary considerably across Indiana. About half (52.3 percent) of high schools graduated more than 80 percent of their senior classes while 15.1 percent of schools topped 90 percent. In contrast, 5.2 percent of Indiana schools graduated fewer than half of their students within four years. State and national data reveal that students from low-income families, as well as African American, Hispanic and Limited English Proficient students are significantly less likely to graduate than their peers. Indiana high schools with the highest percentages of these student populations generally had the lowest graduation rates statewide. “Like many of the most pressing challenges in our education system, high school graduation rates reflect larger, societal issues that extend far beyond the classroom,” Reed said. “Schools clearly have a crucial role to play, but success greatly depends on the extent to which local communities are engaged in the struggle.” Early intervention and community support Studies show many contributing factors that prevent students from earning a diploma begin long before high school, underscoring the need for early intervention. Reed noted that recent steps such as expanded state-funding for full-day kindergarten programs and the upcoming statewide rollout of new computer-based teaching tools can help address student learning needs sooner, but local-led efforts are essential. The Indiana Department of Education’s High School Graduation Taskforce is working to support local communities in this regard by bringing together policymakers, educators, business leaders and community members to see where underlying problems exist and to determine how these areas can be addressed best. Actions to date include promoting innovative high school redesign models, linking schools on academic probation to improvement resources, identifying state rules and regulations that might help or hinder dropout prevention efforts and collaborating with organizations in local communities like the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, whose Common Goal Initiative is directly focused on improving graduation rates and reducing dropout rates. Indiana graduation rates by the numbers
For more information on Indiana’s graduation rate (including data for local high schools), visit www.doe.in.gov/gradrate.
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Indiana Department of Education |
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