Fayette graduation rate falls slightly but remains second highest in metro Atlanta, third highest in state
Fayette’s 2017 high school graduation rate remains strong at 89.3 percent, with the school system posting the second highest rate in the metro Atlanta area for the second consecutive year, according to Melinda Berry-Dreisbach, spokesperson for the Fayette County School System.
Compared to all school systems in the state with at least 1,000 students in the 2017 graduation class, Fayette has the third highest graduation rate. The school system’s rate is well above the state percentage of 80.6, Berry-Dreisbach said.
Fayette’s overall graduation rate took over a one percent dip from 2016 when it was 91.2 percent.
Ranked by graduation rate, the county’s leader is Starr’s Mill High, followed by Whitewater High, McIntosh High, Fayette County High, and Sandy Creek High.
Starr’s Mill High saw over a 2 percent increase in its graduation rate, posting 93.6 percent compared to 91.4 percent in 2016. The school has the 24th highest graduation rate in the state compared to other high schools with graduation classes of 300 students or more, Berry-Dreisbach said.
Graduation rates at Fayette County High (85.6 percent), McIntosh High (91.8 percent), Sandy Creek High (82.7 percent), and Whitewater High (92.3 percent) decreased by 1.7 percent, 1.6 percent, 2.1 percent, and 5.3 percent, respectively.
In a news release from the system, Berry-Dreisbach said:
High school principals and county administrators are analyzing information from last year’s graduation class to see what supports are needed to help graduation rates increase across the county.
Georgia calculates an adjusted cohort graduation rate as required by federal law. The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate is the number of students who graduate in four years with a regular high school diploma divided by the number of students who form the adjusted cohort for the graduating class.
From the beginning of ninth grade, students who are entering that grade for the first time form a cohort that is subsequently “adjusted” by adding any students who transfer into the cohort during the next three years, and subtracting any students who transfer out.
While all states use the same calculation, each state sets its own requirements for students to earn a regular high school diploma. Georgia has some of the highest requirements in the nation for students to graduate with a regular diploma.
