When it comes to tossing caps in the air, Montgomery County Public Schools is once again No. 1.
The local school system has the highest graduation rate, at 87.6 percent, of the 50 largest school districts in the nation. It is Montgomery’s fourth consecutive year in the top spot, while across-the-Potomac rival Fairfax County ranked second, with 85.5 percent of seniors graduating, according to the annual “Diplomas Count” report published by Education Week.
Prince George’s County stumbled in the rankings as its graduation rate dropped from 67.1 percent in 2008 to 65 percent in 2009. Education Week uses the most recent data available from the National Center for Education Statistics, meaning this year’s data is from the class of 2009.
| A flip of the tassle | ||||
| Year | D.C. | Maryland | Virginia | U.S. |
| 2009 | 52.4% | 77.9% | 76.0% | 73.4% |
| 2008 | 43.0% | 76.8% | 72.7% | 71.7% |
| 2007 | 49.8% | 73.7% | 69.9% | 68.8% |
| 2006 | 48.8% | 73.5% | 69.2% | 69.2% |
| 2005 | 57.6% | 73.6% | 72.9% | 70.6% |
| 2004 | 58.2% | 74.7% | 73.1% | 70.0% |
| 2003 | 58.9% | 74.4% | 73.6% | 69.7% |
| 2002 | 61.1% | 76.7% | 73.1% | 69.3% |
| 2001 | 65.2% | 75.3% | 72.6% | 68.0% |
| 2000 | 53.5% | 72.7% | 77.4% | 66.8% |
| 1999 | 65.7% | 71.8% | 73.9% | 66.0% |
| 10-year change | -13.3 | +6.1 | +2.1 | +7.3 |
Prince William County shot up from 68.4 percent to 74.3 percent under the report’s calculations. Among the 50 largest districts, graduation rates varied widely, from Detroit’s 42.4 percent to Montgomery County’s 87.6 percent.
“Th[e] report demonstrates our students’ determination to be ready for the opportunities that lie beyond graduation and our continued commitment to support them,” said Shirley Brandman, president of Montgomery’s school board.
Montgomery County’s graduation rate was nearly 2 percentage points higher than in 2008. Fairfax County saw a smaller uptick of 0.4 percentage points from 85.1 percent in 2008.
On the state level, Maryland’s graduation rate of 77.9 percent bested Virginia’s 76 percent. Maryland ranked 13th among states, while Virginia was 19th. Nationally, the graduation rate was 73.4 percent in 2009, up from 71.7 percent in 2008. New Jersey topped the nation with 87.4 percent of the class of 2009 graduating.
Although ranked last among states, the District saw a dramatic upswing; 52.4 percent of the class of 2009 graduated, up from 43 percent in 2008. The District’s performance has varied significantly over the past 10 years — in 2007, the rate was 49.8 percent — since coming in at 65.7 percent in 1999.
Marc Caposino, a spokesman for the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education, said officials were pleased but “we’re much more focused on the future.” Graduation rates vary depending on the calculation method, and D.C. puts its rate closer to 58 percent.
“We’re always excited about gains made in the past, but even at 58 percent we know there is progress left to be made,” Caposino said.
