DENVER—The state’s high school graduation rate fell six percentage points to 74.1 percent in the 2005-2006 school year, but state officials pointed out they used a new formula for the latest figures released Wednesday.
The graduation rate was 80.1 percent in the 2004-2005 school year, using a different formula.
The Colorado Department of Education previously did not count students who left schools to get General Education Development certificates, considering them to be transfers instead. The new standard, required under legislation passed in 2005, includes those students, as recommended by the National Governors Council.
“This definition reflects a higher standard for schools and districts and prompts us to renew our dedication to improve the rigor and relevance of coursework in all grades and support students in their efforts to achieve a high school diploma,” said Education Commissioner Dwight Jones.
“Regardless of the use of the new formula, the numbers indicate that we still have significant work ahead of us when it comes to increasing the graduation rate,” said Evan Dreyer, spokesman for Gov. Bill Ritter. He noted Ritter has appointed an education reform panel whose goals include cutting the dropout rate in half in the next decade.
Colorado has resisted a trend aimed at raising standards for science and math, and is one of only six states that does not set high school graduation standards, said the Denver-based Education Commission of States.
The graduation rate is calculated by following each school district’s entering ninth-grade class and tracking them through the end of the 12th grade year to determine the membership base of each class, then dividing the number of students who receive a diploma by the base.
In 2005-2006, there were 59,972 students in the membership base and 44,424 graduated for a rate of 74.1 percent. The low graduation rates of Denver and Aurora dragged the state total down, with both under 50 percent, according to the Maryland-based Editorial Projects in Education Research Center.
Females outperformed males with a graduation rate of 78 percent compared to 70.3 percent.
The rate for American Indian students was 56.9 percent; for Asian students, 82.5 percent; for black students, 62.7 percent; for Hispanic students, 56.7 percent; and for white students, 80.8 percent.
