New graduation rates show DCPS increasing for the sixth consecutive year
1/9/2020
Florida released public school graduation rates today, and the news is positive in Duval County.
The county’s graduation rate rose from 85.1% to 86.5%, an increase of 1.4 percentage points over the prior year. This represents the sixth consecutive year that Duval County has increased its graduation rate. Additionally, this represents the third consecutive year that Duval County has had a larger percentage point increase than Florida (+0.8 percentage points).
Dr. Greene, Duval County for Public Schools' Superintendent, applauded the news in her statement to the community: "I hope this serves as a point of pride for you as members for our Team Duval. These record-breaking results show that – from elementary to high school – we are providing the children the tools they need to graduate and be well-equipped for success in college or their chosen career."
Graduation rate comparison among Big 7 School Districts
Among Big 7 school districts, Duval had the third-highest percentage point increase, behind Pinellas by 1 percentage point and Broward by ½ percentage point. Both Orange and Palm Beach counties had decreases in high school graduation rates between 2017-18 and 2018-19.
With regard to surrounding counties, St. Johns, Nassau and Clay counties still lead the region in graduation rates, with each above 90%. For the second consecutive year, Duval has a higher graduation rate than Baker County, ranking fourth among the five local counties.
Graduation rate comparison among student groups: increasing equity
Both sets of subgroup trends indicate that DCPS is increasing equity in high school graduation rates for historically disadvantaged groups.
Most racial subgroups experienced increases in high school graduation rates, led by American Indian / Alaskan Native (8.5 percentage points) and multi-racial students (5.3 percentage points). Hispanic students matched their percentage increase from the previous year (3.2 percentage points), and high school graduation rates of African American and White students both increased by 1.3 percentage points. There were rate decreases among Asian and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander subgroups, but both of these subgroups remained above 90% high school graduation rates.
Nearly all special subgroups experienced increases in high school graduation rate. Exceptional Education Students led the increases with 7.5 percentage points. Rates also increased for at-risk (2.3 percentage points) and low socioeconomic status (2.2) students. The high school graduation rate for both male (1.7 percentage points) and female (1.1) students increased as well. The only special subgroup that decreased was English Language Learners (-1.9 percentage points), which had seen a 5.4 percent increase in the previous year.
School Level Trends
Of the 21 traditional public high schools, 17 achieved a high school graduation rate above 90%. All but one reporting charter school increased their high school graduation rate between 2017-18 and 2018-19; Lone Star High School decreased by one percentage point.
Three traditional public schools made exceptional progress:
Jean Ribault High School +8.8 percentage points
Baldwin Middle-Senior High School +5.1 percentage points
Sandalwood High School +3.8 percentage points
Three traditional public schools maintained their 2017-18 graduation rate in 2018-19:
Darnell Cookman Middle/High School (100%)
Stanton College Preparatory (99.7%)
Duncan U. Fletcher High School (96.3%)
We celebrate the increased graduation rate with Duval County’s students, parents, teachers, and administrators and look forward to continuing the work in our partnerships as we strive towards decreasing the opportunity gap for our most under-served children.
For more detailed information on statewide and local graduation rates, visit the Florida Department of Education’s report.