INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis Public Schools’ high school graduation rate continued a 10-year upward trend in 2017 – even as the state as a whole saw a decline.
The annual graduation report released Friday by the Indiana Department of Education shows IPS reported an 82.87 percent graduation rate for the 2016-2017 school year. That’s a 6-point increase from 2016, and a 35-point increase over the past 10 years.
In 2007, IPS reported a dismal graduation rate of just 47.4 percent. Since then, though, the district has seen increasing graduation rates every year – with the exception of 2012.
The district’s non-waiver graduation rate (students who receive their diplomas without a special waiver allowing them to fail required tests) also increased to 70.3 percent last year – up from 64 percent in 2016.
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Statewide, the news was less positive. Indiana’s overall graduation rate saw a 2-point drop last year, falling to 87.19 percent from 89.10 percent in 2016. The state’s 2017 graduation rate ranks as the lowest since the 2010-2011 school year – and its non-waiver graduation rate in 2017 was even lower (by .3%) than that year.
While graduation rates fell across the board statewide, the decline was particularly pronounced among English language learners (ELL), who saw a 15-percent decrease in graduation rates. That drop coincided with a 17-percent increase in the overall number of ELL students in Indiana’s public schools.
More information about IDOE’s 2017 Graduation Rate Report may be found here.
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