California’s high school graduation rate continued its steady climb last year — but paradoxically, its dropout rate nudged up as well, according to figures released Tuesday by the state Department of Education.
About four out of five students who entered high school in fall 2010 graduated last June — 80.8 percent, up from 80.4 percent for the previous class. But 11.6 percent of those destined for the class of 2014 dropped out, up from 11.4 percent for the previous year’s class.
Both figures can rise because neither includes students who continue their education without graduating.
Lake County’s five school districts combined for an 80.3 percent graduation rate, slightly lower than the statewide mark. However, four of the five districts maintained graduation rates markedly higher than the state average.
Middletown Unified School District presented diplomas to 90.8 percent of its students. Lakeport Unified graduated 89.5 percent, followed by Kelseyville Unified at 87.9 percent and Upper Lake with an 86.5 percent rate.
“We focused on it for a long time — trying to improve on the number of students going to college,” said Korby Olson, Superintendent for the Middletown Unified district. “We have good kids. They work hard. We have a good staff and we’ve been able to maintain that staff.”
He considers a consistent staff one of the factors that help keep students on the path to graduation.
“The biggest reason students drop out is they haven’t found a way to connect to the school,” Olson said. Staff interaction with wavering students can provide a level of trust and community.
The largest factor in settling the county average at a few tenths below the state was Konocti Unified’s mark. Only 69.6 percent of students from this district completed their high school coursework.
Compared to the 2011 graduating class, the percentage of Lake County students receiving degrees actually dropped, from 80.9 to the current rate. In 2011 all California schools averaged 77.1.
Again, however, the data contains ebbs and flows. Lakeport, Middletown and Upper Lake all improved between the classes of 2011 and 2014. Four years ago Lakeport graduated 87.6 percent of its students, Middletown 87.6 percent and Upper Lake 84.0 percent. On the other hand, Kelsevville’s rate has dropped since 2011, from 88.8 percent. Konocti’s rate fell from 74.2 to the current 69.6.
For students scheduled to graduate in 2014, 83.6 percent of females completed their coursework compared to 77.7 percent of males.
While graduation rate gains cheered educators, the numbers also highlighted persistent and troubling gaps in education. Statewide, more than one in five African-American high school students and nearly one in seven Latino students dropped out before graduating. Those proportions compared with one in 13 white students and one in 21 Asian students who dropped out.
The gap is even more pronounced in Santa Clara County, where Latino school completion continued to lag behind not only neighboring counties, but also the state.
Only 70.4 percent of Santa Clara County Latino students entering high school in 2010 graduated last year compared with 76.4 percent of Latinos statewide. The Latino graduation rates were 75.5 percent in Alameda County, 79.3 percent in San Mateo County and 79.4 percent in Contra Costa County.
But from district to district, progress is uneven. Graduation rates rose in Alameda County, to 82.8 percent. However, the county has one of the highest rates locally of African-American dropouts — 20.9 percent, a figure that remained steady last year and exceeds the statewide average for black students.
The problem is more acute in Oakland Unified, where just 60.5 percent of students entering in 2010 graduated last year. That was down from 62.8 percent for the previous class. Latino students’ graduation rate fell markedly last year to 54.4 percent, down from 59.3 percent. The graduation rate for black students rose slightly but remains at just 57.2 percent, more than 10 points below the state average for black students.
Sharon Noguchi is a reporter with the San Jose Mercury News
