APS On-Time Graduation Rate Remains High for Class of 2019

• On-time Graduation rate is 93%, and 65% of graduates earned an advanced diploma.
• The graduation rate for the three comprehensive high schools is 96%, of which 69% earned an advanced diploma.

The APS On-Time Graduation Rate (OGR) for the Class of 2019 is 93%, (1,636 students), remaining consistently high with past year’s performance. In 2019, 65% of APS students who graduated earned an Advanced Studies or IB diploma and 90% of those responding to a survey reported that they plan to continue their education with a post-secondary experience.

The OGR reflects the percentage of students who earned a Board of Education-approved diploma within four years of entering high school for the first time. OGR increased by more than eight percentage points from 85% in 2009 to 93% in 2019.

For those APS students in the 2019 cohort who attended Wakefield, Washington-Lee (now Washington-Liberty), or Yorktown in their last year of high school, the graduation rate was 96%. Of these students, 69% earned an Advanced Studies or IB diploma.

Notably, the largest gain in the OGR by reporting group was for English Learners. This group’s OGR increased by 2 percentage points from 75% (2018) to 77%. The OGR rate for both Asian and Black students increased by 1 percentage point from 2018. Additionally, the percentage of graduates earning an advanced diploma increased for Students with Disabilities (up by 1 percentage point from 24% (2018) to 25%.

The OGR for economically disadvantaged students dropped slightly to 92.2% but is still higher than the state OGR rate of 87.2%. Finally, the OGR for Hispanic students remained the same at 81% besting the state rate of 80%.

“Congratulations to our most recent graduates who continue to make us all proud, and thank you to the APS school principals, teachers, staff and families who supported them,” said Interim Superintendent Cintia Johnson. “We are proud of the progress we’ve made in maintaining one of the highest graduation rates in the state and remain focused on continuing our work to close gaps among student groups.” She continued, “These positive outcomes are made possible by our excellent staff, and we are committed to equipping teachers with the resources they need to meet the individual needs of every student.”

VDOE Release and Definitions

• The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) released 2019 On-Time Graduation and Dropout Rates.
• Both rates are based on the cohort of students who first entered Grade 9 during the 2015-16 school year:
  • On-time graduates are those who earned a Virginia Board of Education-approved diploma [1].
  • Dropouts reflect the students who dropped out or whose status is undetermined.

Additional Resources Online
High school cohort reports for schools, school divisions and the commonwealth are available for viewing and downloading on the VDOE website.

• Table 1: APS Cohort On-time Graduation and Dropout Rates
• Table 2: APS Diploma Rates Among APS Graduates
• Table 3: 2019 On-time Graduation and Dropout Rates by School

[1] Advanced Studies Diplomas include International Baccalaureate Diplomas earned by students in the IB program at Washington-Lee High School. Modified Standard Diplomas and Special Diplomas are available only to students with disabilities and, beginning with the Grade 9 class in 2013-14, will no longer be offered.