PHOTO: Mayor de Blasio and a student captured the moment last week at the High School for Arts and Business in Corona as hizzoner commended students and educators for rising graduation rates. Photo Courtesy of Demetrius Freeman/Mayoral Photography Unit
By Forum Staff
Mayor Bill de Blasio met with students on-track to graduate at the High School for Arts and Business in Corona last week, where the graduation rate jumped to top 90 percent for the first time, and graduating students’ college readiness increased more than 8 percentage points last year.
The graduation rates released this week reflect the graduation and dropout percentages among the cohort of all students who entered 9th grade in the fall of 2011. All percentage point changes below are comparisons to the previous year.
· The graduation rate rose to 70.5 percent in 2014-15, a 2-point gain
· The dropout rate fell to 9.0 percent, a decrease of 0.7 points
City students’ graduation rates improved across the board, according to the administration, with Latino, Asian, and black students posting higher gains:
· Hispanic students’ graduation rate increased to 64.0 percent, a 2.5 point gain
· Asian students’ graduation rate increased to 85.0 percent, a 2.4 point gain
· Black students’ graduation rate increased to 65.4 percent, a 1.7 point gain
· White students’ graduation rate increased to 82.0 percent, a 1.4 point gain
Simultaneously, dropout rates fell among all ethnicities:
· Hispanic students’ dropout rate fell to 11.9 percent, a 0.8 point decrease
· Asian students’ dropout rate fell to 4.6 percent, a 1.2 point decrease
· Black students’ dropout rate fell to 9.3 percent, a 0.3 point decrease
· White students’ dropout rate fell to 5.2 percent, a 0.9 point decrease
“Our schools are moving in the right direction. More kids are graduating on time, more of them are college-ready, and fewer are dropping out. As we’re raising the bar through our Equity and Excellence plan, we’re making sure every student in every school has access to the tools that will help them succeed,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The Mayor and Chancellor have pledged to meet rigorous benchmarks: 80 percent of students are expected to graduate from high school on time; two-thirds of them will be truly college-ready, based on the most rigorous new standards aligned with the Common Core; and all students will be reading in 2nd grade.
To meet those targets, de Blasio committed to providing every student and every school with appropriate preparatory tools: expanding Advanced Placement classes to every single school; providing every student with Computer Science classes in elementary, middle and high school; and ensuring all students are on track to take Algebra by the 9th grade. The Mayor also committed to new district-charter school learning partnerships and a College Access for All roadmap for every student. In two historically low-performing districts, the City also launched a new “Single Shepherd” program to provide dedicated support to every family to guide their child from middle school to college.
The graduation rates released this week reflect the graduation and dropout percentages among the cohort of all students who entered 9th grade in the fall of 2011.
The City announced earlier this school year that 53 percent of the Class of 2014 enrolled in a two- or four-year college, vocational program, or public service program after graduation, the highest percentage ever.
In addition, the City reported increases in students’ participation and performance in AP and SAT exams across all ethnicities. New York City seniors’ average math, critical reading, and writing scores all increased while nationwide average scores on all three components fell. On Advanced Placement, the number of students taking at least one exam rose 8.0 percent, from 39,318 students to a record 42,481 students, and has increased 40.1 percent in the last five years; the number of students passing AP exams also increased 5.9 percent. Participation increases were largest for Black and Hispanic students. The gains in college enrollment and AP and SAT participation and performance reflect the City’s ongoing commitment to increasing college readiness and access.
As part of its commitment to equity and excellence in college access and planning for all students, the City is implementing the SAT School Day. Starting in the 2016-17 school year, all students will participate in the SAT exam during the school day in the spring of their high school junior year starting in spring 2017. The new SAT School Day removes a number of barriers to SAT participation for students, while also promoting a strong college-going culture by encouraging students to think about college as part of their high school career.
