The percentage of Louisiana high school students graduating in four years once again reached an all-time high last year at 78.1%, the Louisiana Department of Education announced this morning.
The 78.1% graduation rate for the 2016-2017 school year is a 5.8 percentage point increase from 2012 and a 12.1 percentage point increase since 2008.
The East Baton Rouge Parish School District, meanwhile, had a 66.7% graduation rate last year, a percentage point decrease from 2016—and more than half of its schools didn’t meet the state graduation rate.
The City of Baker School District saw a 61.7% graduation rate, the lowest in the Capital Region, while Zachary Community School District posted the area’s highest rate, 91.1%. The Central Community School District had an 88.4% graduation rate.
With graduation rates above 95%, the highest performing schools in the local district were Lee Magnet High School and Baton Rouge Magnet High School, followed by Mentorship STEAM Academy, at 87.4%.
Scotlandville Magnet High School and Northeast High School also posted graduation rates higher than the state average, at 80.1% and 77.1%, respectively. The remaining high schools in the district saw graduation rates lower than the district’s average of 66.7%.
Louisiana graduated 39,370 students last year, up from 38,859 in 2016.
Graduation rates of historically disadvantaged students also rose statewide last year, and 48% of students overall graduated with early college credits or career credentials, up from 43% in 2016. Of the graduates with career credentials, 13% had passed Advanced Placement or CLEP tests, three times as many who had in 2013.
Nearly 73% of economically disadvantaged students graduated, up from about 71% in 2016. Nearly 73% of African-American students graduated, up from about 71% in 2016. Also, more than 53% of students with disabilities graduated, up from about 45% in 2016.Â
