Graduation Rate

Read more about the percent of students who graduate from high school and efforts to increase it
In this Aug. 13, 2014, file photo, a student prepares to leave the Enterprise Attendance Center school southeast of Brookhaven Miss. The federal government has decided to delay changing the way it determines funding for rural education after a bipartisan group of lawmakers said the move would hurt hundreds of schools.
A student prepares to leave the Enterprise Attendance Center school southeast of Brookhaven, Miss., on Aug. 13, 2014.
Rogelio V. Solis/AP
School & District Management The State of Rural Schools, in Charts: Funding, Graduation Rates, Performance, and More
Rural schools receive less funding on average from states, but they still deal with the mental health and academic crises facing all schools.
Libby Stanford, November 20, 2023
5 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Accountability Opinion What’s Wrong With Online Credit Recovery? This Teacher Will Tell You
The “whatever it takes” approach to increasing graduation rates ends up deflating the value of a diploma.
Rick Hess, November 20, 2023
5 min read
Tight cropped photo of blue mortarboard and yellow tassel shot on blue graduation gown.
iStock/Getty
English-Language Learners What Graduation Rates for English Learners Look Like
The U.S. Department of Education released new English learner graduation rate data from the 2019-20 school year.
Ileana Najarro, July 7, 2023
2 min read
Teacher Dawn Mathis works with student Rylee Humphries, 16, during an after school program at Mountain Education Charter High School in Woodstock, Ga. The Mountain Education Charter High School system has a program that pairs struggling students with adults who have faced similar challenges.
Teacher Dawn Mathis works with student Rylee Humphries, 16, during an after school program at Mountain Education Charter High School in Woodstock, Ga. The Mountain Education Charter High School system has a program that pairs struggling students with adults who have faced similar challenges.
Dustin Chambers for Education Week
Special Report Class of 2021: Digging Out From Under COVID
Graduation rates fell in 31 states in 2021. This package explores the Class of 2021's steep climb to academic recovery.
August 29, 2022
Students are always greeted by Cheryl Rohmer as they check in for the after school program at Mountain Education Charter High School in Woodstock, Ga. The network, like other dropout recovery programs, has expanded during the pandemic due to rising need.
Marcia Oliveira, left, and her son Angelo, 18, talk with a graduation advocate in Charleston, S.C., about how to schedule credit-recovery classes around the new restaurant job Angelo had to pick up during the pandemic to help his family.
Henry Taylor for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness From Our Research Center Plunging Graduation Rates Signal Long Recovery
In the second year of the pandemic, the number of states with falling graduation rates more than doubled.
Sarah D. Sparks, August 29, 2022
10 min read
Illustration of students climbing broken ladders
Vanessa Solis/Education Week and iStock/Getty
College & Workforce Readiness Opinion High School Graduation Is Down. There Are No Quick Fixes
Online credit-recovery programs are popular, but many shortchange students, write Robert Balfanz and Karen Hawley Miles.
Robert Balfanz & Karen Hawley Miles, May 26, 2022
4 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Teacher Prep Needs More Focus on Students With Disabilities, Report Says
To their detriment, teacher preparation programs 'do not center students with disabilities in their curriculum,' a new report from the Center for American Progress concludes.
Corey Mitchell, January 23, 2020
2 min read
College & Workforce Readiness What the Research Says High School Completions on Par for Black, White Students
For the first time in 40 years, the percentage of black 18- to 24-year-olds with a high school credential was nearly the same as that of their white peers, data from the National Center for Education Statistics show, but racial gaps remain for earning an on-time diploma.
Megan Ruge, January 21, 2020
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness What the Research Says Support for Black Boys Boosts Graduation Rates
A new evaluation of an Oakland, Calif., school district program designed to wrap black male students in a culturally rich and supportive environment is paying off.
Christina A. Samuels, October 29, 2019
1 min read
Special Education Preparing Students for Life After Special Education? Here's How Federal Dollars Can Help
When can schools use federal funds to help students with disabilities prepare for life after special education? A new resource from the federal education department offers a road map.
Corey Mitchell, September 18, 2019
1 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
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Student Well-Being Opinion A Wake-Up Call on Student Homelessness
Homeless students' graduation rates should be a national priority for us all, urge John King and John Bridgeland.
John B. King Jr. & John M. Bridgeland, August 27, 2019
4 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Are End-of-Course Exams an Alternative to Exit Exams? Maybe
End-of-course tests in some courses may support graduation rates, finds a new study.
Sarah D. Sparks, August 27, 2019
2 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Homeless Students' Struggles Come Into Sharper Focus Under ESSA
A new study shows that homeless children may have the lowest high school graduation rates of any student group, and there is no easy fix for the problem.
Corey Mitchell, June 11, 2019
3 min read
Odessa High School graduate Andrea Perea waves to family members in the crowd during a graduation ceremony for the class of 2019 at Ratliff Stadium in Odessa, Texas.
Odessa High School graduate Andrea Perea waves to family members in the crowd during a graduation ceremony for the class of 2019 at Ratliff Stadium in Odessa, Texas.
Jacob Ford/Odessa American via AP
College & Workforce Readiness Is the Nation's Rising Graduation Rate Real?
More high school students than ever are graduating, and a new report suggests that’s not due to lowered standards—it’s because students are actually learning more.
Catherine Gewertz, June 11, 2019
5 min read