Georgia DOE: High school graduation rate rises

“This is something to celebrate,” State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge said. “When we see the graduation rate consistently trending upward and when we see a greater percentage of our students graduating from our public high schools, we are talking about individual students and individual dreams. We’re talking about students whose options and futures expanded when they obtained a high-school diploma. So we are celebrating their victories, and turning toward the future, and the work necessary to make those dreams a reality for an even higher percentage of students.”

This is the fourth year Georgia has calculated the graduation rate using a new formula – known as the adjusted cohort rate – now required by the U.S. Department of Education. The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate defines the cohort based on when a student first becomes a freshman; it is calculated using the number of students who graduate within four years and includes adjustments for student transfers. In contrast, Georgia’s former graduation rate calculation defined the cohort upon graduation, which may have included students who took more than four years for graduate.

“While all states now calculate the graduation rate using the same formula, what each state requires to earn a diploma varies dramatically across the country,” Superintendent Barge said. “Georgia has one of the highest sets of standards in the country for students, so our graduation rate typically doesn’t look very good when compared to the nation -- but it’s simply not an apples-to-apples comparison. What we’re ultimately concerned about in Georgia is that more and more students earn a high school diploma, and we’re seeing that happen each year.”

More Information:

State Graduation Rates

2014 – 72.5 percent

2013 – 71.8 percent

2012 – 69.7 percent

2011 – 67.4 percent