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DC Public School Graduation Rates Increase by 4% in 2014-15 School Year

Monday, October 19, 2015

The 2014-15 school year graduation rate for public high schools in the District of Columbia increased 4 percentage points over the 2013-14 school year, with both District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) and public charter schools posting gains, according to official data released today by the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE).

The graduation rate for DCPS rose 6.1 percentage points to 64.4 percent; the graduation rate for public charter schools rose 2.8 percentage points to 71.7 percent. Overall, 65.4% or 3,210 of 4,912 public school students in the District graduated high school in 2015, four years after entering the ninth grade.

“Today’s news is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our students, teachers, administrators and families,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “Graduating from high school with a high-quality education is an important step on the pathway to the middle class for our young people. While the District has made progress in recent years, we need to plow ahead and continue to improve our schools to ensure that all of our students have the knowledge they need to succeed in school and in the workforce.”

The District uses the Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate (ACGR) to maintain a consistent standard for high school graduation rate reporting. Under the ACGR, a "cohort" of students who entered school as first-time ninth graders in the 2011-12 school year was tracked for four years to determine the total number of students who graduated from high school in the 2014-15 school year with a regular diploma.

“The 4 percentage-point increase in the statewide graduation rate, based on increases in both DCPS and public charter schools, mean more students are succeeding in high school and graduating on time,” said State Superintendent Hanseul Kang. “We still have a lot of work to do, but these results indicate that we are on the right track, and we will continue to support our students and teachers in any way we can to ensure all students graduate on time.”  

The District's graduation rate measurements account for students who transferred out of the cohort to private schools, began home schooling, moved to another state or country, died or had a serious illness. The measurements also account for students who transferred into the DC public or public charter school system after being a first-time ninth grader in the 2011-12 school year in another school district.

For more information about public school graduation rates in the District, visit the OSSE website at http://osse.dc.gov/.