The Clarke County School District saw strong increases in its high school graduation rates last school year with gains in most demographic areas, according to data released Tuesday, Oct. 8, by the Georgia Department of Education. The improvements followed a year of intentional efforts to implement a consistent approach in all classrooms geared toward continuously increasing the number of CCSD students who graduate within four years. 

For the 2023-24 school year, CCSD saw a 5.7-point increase in its four-year graduation rate to 81.1%, bringing the district closer to the statewide four-year rate of 85.4%. In addition, the district’s overall rate (which includes students who graduate within five years) increased 3.4 points to 80.4%. CCSD also exceeded its target four-year rates across multiple demographics – including white students (91.8%), Black students (77.2%), Hispanic students (80.2), economically disadvantaged students (81.1%), and students with disabilities (61.3%). 

Cedar Shoals High School saw major increases across the board with a nearly 12-point increase in its four-year rate to 81.9% and a 7.4-point jump in its overall rate to 78.9%. The school also had increases and exceeded target four-year rates across all demographics by more than 10 points, including improvements to 81.1% among Black students and 78.9% among Hispanic students, while the four-year rate among English Language Learners rose more than 20 points. 

Clarke Central High School’s four-year rate increased nearly 3 points to 83.1%, while its overall rate also ticked up 1.7 points to 83%. Most demographic groups at Clarke Central showed improvement or remained steady in their five-year rates. 

Classic City High School, meanwhile, also continues to see more of its students graduate within four years in a non-traditional high school setting. 

Each year, Georgia calculates a four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate as required by federal law. This rate is the number of students who graduate in four years with a regular high school diploma, divided by the number of students who form the adjusted cohort for the graduating class. The four-year adjusted cohort includes students who enter ninth grade at the beginning of the school year and adds or subtracts any students who transfer in or out over the next three years. 

“We are pleased that the efforts we began putting into place last year using our 2024 - 2029 Strategic Plan as a guiding force are paying great dividends. However, we will continue to push even harder to ensure we remain on an upward trajectory,” said CCSD Superintendent Dr. Robbie Hooker. “We remain committed to delivering meaningful, empowering, and engaging learning opportunities for every child we serve, which in turn will lead to improved student performance and higher graduation rates in the years to come. We must remain on track to realizing our vision of being a high-performing school district that ensures all students can access opportunities and positively contribute to their communities. We know that our community expects nothing less of us – because the success of each student is critical to our future.”