By Sarah Campbell
scampbell@salisburypost.com
The Rowan-Salisbury School System’s four-year graduation rate climbed to an all-time high of 81 percent this year, according to data released Thursday by the N.C. Department of Public Instruction.
That’s up from 77 percent last year.
“That is a significant jump, but we’re not satisfied because we want it to be higher,” said Dr. Jim Emerson, chairman of the Board of Education. “But we’re moving in the right direction.”
The Kannapolis City school district, which has only one high school, saw a decline in this year’s graduation rate from 85 percent to 83 percent.
But both school systems boast rates higher than the statewide average of 80 percent, the highest rate since the state first began reporting data in 2006.
Almost all of the traditional high schools in the Rowan-Salisbury district, with the exception of Carson High, saw increases. Carson’s graduation rate fell from 87 percent to 85 percent.
Henderson Independent, the school system’s alternative high school, also experienced a drop from nearly 35 percent to 27 percent.
The Rowan County Early College has the highest graduation rate in the county with more than 95 percent of students who started ninth grade in 2008-09 completing in four years or less. The school graduated its first class earlier this year.
Principal Cindy Misenheimer said staff at the Early College takes a proactive approach in making sure students receive a diploma.
“It’s really being willing to do whatever you have to do to keep them in school and noticing if something is beginning to go wrong,” she said. “It’s really very personal for us here when we lose a kid.”
South Rowan’s graduation rate grew the most, jumping 14 percentage points from 73 percent to 87 percent. The school now has the second-highest rate in the county behind East Rowan, which had more than 90 percent of students graduate in at least four years.
Both Salisbury High and West Rowan had spikes of at least five percentage points. Salisbury’s rate climbed to 74 percent from 67 percent the prior year. West Rowan’s rate grew from about 80 percent to 85 percent.
North Rowan saw a slight increase from 71 percent to 72 percent.
Breaking it down
Although the Rowan-Salisbury district experienced growth in the graduation rate of all subgroups, the Kannapolis school system saw almost the opposite.
Males students in the Rowan-Salisbury district had an on-time graduation rate of 77 percent this year, up from 73 percent. That figure is 86 percent for females students for an increase from 81 percent.
Asian students have the highest graduation rate among ethnic groups at 93 percent, an increase from 87 percent.
The percentage of black students who graduated in four years grew from 68 percent to 72 percent. Hispanic students had similar figures with an increase from 69 percent to 75 percent. White students saw a smaller increase from 81 percent to 84 percent.
Low-income students had a graduation rate of 75 percent this year, up from 72 percent.
The rate for students with disabilities remained steady at 53 percent.
In Kannapolis, males graduated on time this year for a rate of 80 percent, down from 83 percent the previous year. The female graduation rate fell by a smaller margin from 87 percent to 86 percent.
Black students have the highest gradation rate among ethnic groups at 90 percent, which is down by 2 percentage points.
The number of white students graduating in four years fell from 82 percent to 80 percent. The rate for Hispanic students had the same deficit dropping to 78 percent from 80 percent.
The district saw an increase in the graduation rates of both low-income and students with limited English proficiency. The rate for economically disadvantaged students grew by one percentage point to 83 percent. That margin was higher for limited English proficient students, jumping from 59 percent to 64 percent.
At 79 percent, the rate for students with disabilities did not change.
Making strides
Rowan-Salisbury school officials tout a number of initiatives as keys to helping the district increase its graduation rate.
Emerson said one biggie has been the district’s LINKS (Learning, Intervention, Nurturing, Knowledge and Student Achievement) program, which is funded by a $6 million federal grant that will run out at the end of the upcoming academic year.
The program provides resources to at-risk students who face everything from alcohol and drug abuse to bullying.
The inception of the night school has also helped the district keep students in school.
The program, which was piloted at West Rowan and Carson and later expanded to all six traditional high schools, allows students flexibility in scheduling as well as the ability to work at their own pace.
Guidance departments also work with students on credit recovery, individualized schedules and differentiated diplomas that require fewer credit hours for students dealing with hardships, said a press release from the district.
The school system’s Alternative to Suspension program gives students the opportunity to keep up with course work while on suspension.
School officials also point out the Early College, which reaches out to those who will likely be first-generation college students.
Emerson said a lot of factors have contributed to the increase because of the money spent and emphasis the district has placed on getting students to graduate.
“If you’re putting emphasis on something like that, then it has a tendency to get better,” he said. “Plus, I think the message is getting through to young people that you’re not going to go very far without a high school diploma. You can’t even get into the Army without one.”
The Kannapolis district is employing similar strategies to bring their graduation rate up.
A.L. Brown High School has a dropout prevention committee that consists of 15 staff members who make home visits, work on scheduling and help students use credit recovery to get back on track.
The district’s alternative program, which will kick off its third year later this month, is also designed to help students stay in school.
The program is geared toward students who have had discipline problems or chronic attendance issues.
A.L. Brown Principal Kevin Garay has also expressed in interest in following Rowan-Salisbury’s lead by launching a night school.
For more details about graduation rates, visit www.ncpublicschools.org/ accountability/reporting/cohortgradrate
Contact reporter Sarah Campbell at 704-797-7683.
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