This week, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released public school graduation and dropout statistics from the 2008-2009 school year. The report includes the number of high school graduates, the Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate, and dropout data for 9^th to 12^th grade public school students.

In 22 states and the District of Columbia, graduation rates increased by at least one percentage point since the 2007-2008 school year. The averaged freshman graduation rate in the United States is 75.5 percent, though this ranged from 56.3 percent to 90.7 percent across individual states.

Additionally, over 600,000 students (grades 9 to 12) reportedly dropped out of high school during the 2008-2009 school year, resulting in a 4.1 percent dropout rate. Almost half of all states indicated that dropout rates increased as grade level increased – from an average 3.2 percent dropout rate for 9^th grade students to a 6 percent rate for 12^th grade students.

For more information, see Public School Graduates and Dropouts From the Common Core of Data: School Year 2008-2009.

Tags: Data, dropouts, Graduation Rates

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