STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island students are earning high school diplomas in record numbers, with the borough's graduation rate jumping nearly three percentage points, officials announced yesterday. About 70 percent of borough students graduated from high school in June 2009, up from 67.3 percent in 2008. It's the first time Staten Island high schools have seen such a...
Their numbers are legion: Susan Wagner High School Class of 2009 marches into the Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George for commencement ceremonies.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Staten Island students are earning high school diplomas in record numbers, with the borough's graduation rate jumping nearly three percentage points, officials announced yesterday.
About 70 percent of borough students graduated from high school in June 2009, up from 67.3 percent in 2008. It's the first time Staten Island high schools have seen such a drastic increase in recent years; for about three years, the borough's graduation rate was stagnant at 67.
Citywide, 59 percent of students graduated in that time frame, up from 56.4 in 2008. Officials said that's 6,200 more students who earned a diploma compared to the previous year.
State and city officials attributed the rise in graduation rates to better programming for students to keep them engaged in the classroom, additional funding for resources and a recognition by students that a high school diploma is key to success in life.
Graduation rates are calculated based on how many students earn a Regents or local diploma within four years.
Most of the Island's schools saw gains, except for Port Richmond High School, which dipped several points. The College of Staten Island's High School for International Studies got a stellar rate for its first graduating class, with 95 percent of students graduating. Staten Island Technical High School maintained the 100 percent graduation rate it first attained in 2008.
Jeanne Johnson, the co-president of the Staten Island Federation of PTAs, said she believes the graduation rate has increased as a result of creative programming principals have implemented in schools. At her son's school, the Ralph R. McKee Career and Technical High School, she said Principal Sharon Henry has offered more tutoring and after-school assistance. McKee's graduation rate increased from 57 percent to 61 percent.
"I just think with the principals being in charge, they can customize the programs they're offering the students so they can reach children who otherwise would have fallen through the cracks," she said. "The teachers also tell them this is not the type of world where you can drop out of high school and get a job. Children see their parents are losing their jobs, they see people with a college education losing their jobs. So what are they going to do without a high school diploma?"
Indeed, dropout rates declined one percentage point on Staten Island, to eight.
Concord High School, a transfer school which students typically enter in sophomore or junior year, had a one-point increase to 28 percent for four-year graduation rates, a one-point drop for students who graduate in five years, at 54 percent, and a three-point increase for students who graduate in six years, at 65 percent.
State officials said they have long been appealing to the federal Education Department to include five- and six-year graduation rates in accountability measures when gauging the success of a given school.
Rates for almost all groups of students showed improvements citywide. Nearly 25 percent of special-education students graduated compared to 22.5 percent in 2008. More than half of Hispanic students graduated in four years for the first time; that number rose to 51.8 percent compared to 48.7 percent in 2008.
Additionally, 44.6 percent of students citywide earned Regents diplomas, which entail tougher standards, such as passing a certain number of Regents exams. About 40.9 percent of students earned Regents diplomas in 2008 and 30 percent earned them in 2005. City officials said they were pleased to hear the news, since the Regents diploma will become the state's standard in two years.
State officials attributed much of their success to funding, and stressed the importance of securing some of the $700 million in Obama administration Race to the Top funding to improve education.
