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Georgia's Graduation Rate Reaches New Heights

Georgia Department of Education

The Georgia Department of Education announced this week that the graduation rate for Georgia’s public high schools is at an all-time high.

The state’s graduation rate for 2018 is 81.6 percent, which is nearly 10 percent higher than it was five years ago and the highest rate since the state began using the federally-mandated adjusted cohort calculation. This number represents the percent of students who came to a high school in the ninth grade and graduated senior year while also taking into account the number of transfer students and those who left the school.

Locally, Clarke County Schools boasted an overall graduation rate of 79.6 percent for all high schools. Clarke Central High School has the highest graduation rate at 86.1 percent, followed by Cedar Shoals High School with 80.3 percent and Classic City High School with a rate of 41.5 percent.

Surrounding counties also performed well. Jackson County (93.6 percent), Madison County (90.4 percent), Oconee County (94.4 percent) and Oglethorpe County (90.9 percent) are four of the 74 school districts across the state that had graduation rates at or above 90 percent. Barrow County narrowly missed out with a graduation rate of 86.1 percent.

State School Superintendent Richard Woods credits this success to the opportunities Georgia’s public schools have.

“From Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education to dual enrollment to the fine arts, there is an unprecedented emphasis on supporting the whole child and making sure every single student understands the relevance of what they’re learning,” Woods says. “I’m confident we’ll continue to see these gains as long as we’re still expanding opportunities that keep students invested in their education.”

To see the full results, click here.