Sean C. Morgan
Sweet Home High School’s graduation rate fell a little last school year while the statewide rate increased slightly, but SHHS remained above the state average.
Sweet Home’s graduation rate 69.74 percent in 2010-11, down from 73.82 percent in 2009-10.
The year before that, 2008-09 was 60.7 percent, said Curriculum Director Tim Porter. “We made a drastic leap.”
The state average increased from 66 percent in 2009-10 to 67.19 percent in 2010-11. The state released the numbers on Jan. 27.
“When you’re talking about less than 200 kids, it only takes two to make a full percentage point – actually more than one percent,” Porter said.
The district has done a good job, especially with programs like GEAR-UP, which in conjunction with ASPIRE, prepares students for college over a six-year period.
When the students realize there are opportunities for them to go on after high school, it’s a push for some of them, Porter said.
The teachers are doing a good job working with the students, Porter said. “There is a lot of time put in with kids who are struggling, getting them the credits they need to graduate.”
“I think we did a good job, although there was a slight decline,” Porter said.
“While these results are encouraging and show that our state is succeeding at graduating more of our students within four years, there are simply far too many kids not reaching this critical milestone,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Susan Castillo. “I am very pleased to see the continued gains in minority and low-income graduation rates, but despite these gains we still have close to half of our Native American, African American, and Hispanic students who aren’t graduating on time. These results are a clear reminder of the work left to be done to ensure that all of our students graduate from high school ready for college and career.”
This graduation rate looks at a cohort, or group, of students who entered high school in the 2007-08 school year and tracks how many graduated with a regular high school diploma within four years. Students who receive a modified diploma, GED, adult high school diploma, or alternative certificate are not counted as graduates in this model.
The graduation rate is calculated by taking the number of students in the group who graduated with a regular diploma within four years and dividing that by the total number of students who entered high school in 2007-08, adjusted for students who move into or out of the system.