The Florida Department of Education has released the 2008/09 graduation and dropout rates and Lee County Public Schools continues to shine.

“I am thrilled and delighted with the continued progress we’re making academically,” said Dr. James Browder, superintendent of Schools.

There has been a change to how the Florida DOE calculates graduation rates and even with this change in criteria, Lee County Public Schools continues to show academic advancement.

Under the “old” way of determining graduation rates, the state included results from all students those receiving standard diplomas, special diplomas and GEDs. Now the state is only using data from students receiving standard and special diplomas and removed the GED students.

Looking back on the past two school years, no matter which calculation method is used, the District’s graduation rate increased.

Previous Method:

Lee County State

2006/07 71.8% 72.4%

2007/08 77.8% 75.4%

2008/09 78.3% 78.6%

New Method:

2006/07 70.6% 70.3%

2007/08 76.9% 73.1%

2008/09 77.6% 76.3%

So why the change to how the state determines graduation rates?

The U.S. Department of Education has mandated that a uniform calculation method be implemented nationwide by 2010/11. This new method will only count standard diploma data GED and special diplomas will not count toward a graduation rate.

That is vastly different than how Florida has calculated graduation rates. For the last 10 years, the rate used by the Florida DOE is known as Florida’s regular graduation rate, which includes standard and special diplomas as well as GEDs. But with the new federal requirement, the state has to change what it does.

So, in order to transition to the new method, the Florida DOE has taken a step in that direction by only using the criteria from the National Governors Association compact, which includes standard and special diplomas but removes GED students from its calculations.

“I think we all agree that a uniform way of determining graduation rates is long overdue,” said Browder. “I am concerned; however, that removing GED, special diplomas and certificates of completion students from the calculation won’t provide the whole graduation rate picture.”

“Whether a student earns their GED, a special diploma or a certificate of completion our focus will always be to provide the best educational environment for all children and help them do their very best.”

The District’s dropout rate also improved and the method to calculate that remains unchanged. In fact, the dropout rate is the lowest it has ever been for Lee County Public Schools.

2006/07 2.4% 3.3%

2007/08 1.8% 2.6%

2008/09 1.3% 2.3%

And if you go back seven years, the District’s dropout rate was around 7% – so it’s clear the District is on the right track.

“I continue to be encouraged by the declining dropout rate, and I believe we are providing a wide range of educational opportunities to keep children in school,” said Browder. “We will continue to look for as many educational experiences as we can provide to ensure students stay in school and stay on track.”

Unlike the graduation rate, which is four-year tracking of students, the drop out rate is a “snapshot” of one school year and how many students who are withdrawn from school without indicating they will be enrolling in another school.