New data released by the Oregon Department of Education Thursday shows more students are on track to graduate, but the number of students going to college is going down.
The statewide average for on-time graduation is 81%. The average for on-track to graduate is 84% — meaning the have one-quarter of their graduation credits in their 9th grade year.
Fifty-nine percent of students were regular attenders — students who attended more than 90% of their enrolled school days.
Here is the graduation and attendance rate breakdown for 2022-23 for Central Oregon school districts, most of which are ahead of the state average.
Bend-La Pine School District
- 84% on-time graduation (Up 2%)
- 92% on track to graduate (Up 1%)
- 60% regular attenders (Up 1%)
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Redmond School District
- 88% on-time graduation (Up 3%)
- 87% on track to graduate (Up 9%)
- 61% regular attenders
Crook County School District
- 92% on-time graduation (Up 3%)
- 93%% of students on track to graduate
- 63% regular attenders (Up 5%)
Jefferson County School District 509J
- 89% on-time graduation (Up 4%)
- 82% on track to graduate
- 56% regular attenders (Up 10%)
Sisters School District
- 90% on-time graduation (Down 4%)
- >95% on track to graduate
- 71% regular attenders (Down 4%)
Culver School District
- 94% on-time graduation (Up 2%)
- >95% on track to graduate (Up >2%)
- 65% regular attenders (Up 2%)
When it comes to the number of high school graduates that go on to a 2-year or 4-year college within sixteen months of getting their diploma, the state saw a drop of 0.8% to 55.6% for the class of 2021. That was during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many Central Oregon school districts were below the state average with the exception of Bend-La Pine, which saw 63% of its graduates move on to college.
ODE says the challenges during the pandemic played a key role in some of these stats.
“The difficulty accessing support services and some students living spaces beyond being difficult for studying and those kinds of things. And so students just really wanted to put college on pause, you know, while they could figure out their lives,” said ODE Director Dr. Charlene Williams.
ODE said it is working with high schools to provide more resources and programming encouraging students to go college.
Here is the full release from ODE about the statewide results.
The Oregon Department of Education today released the At-A-Glance School and District Profiles for the 2022-23 school year. The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles are designed to provide key school and district level information to local communities.
“I’m in no way satisfied with where these results are. I took this role to make a difference, we need to see what the data are telling us and be responsive to that,” said Dr. Charlene Williams, Oregon Department of Education Director. “It’s a good sign that the 9th Grade On-Track figure, a key metric in making sure students are on track to graduate from high school, is rising. The decrease in attendance, however, is a signal that we need to continue removing barriers to attendance by making our schools engaging and welcoming for students.”
The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles contain previously released assessment data for last school year, previously released graduation data for the class of 2022 and some new data for the 2022-23 school year. The profiles provide a quick and comprehensive approach to share how schools and school districts are serving students.
Key Statewide Information
- The statewide 9th Grade On-Track rate rose last year by 0.8% and is approaching pre-pandemic levels. This increase represents nearly 700 more students being on-track to graduate at the end of 9th grade, compared to a year ago. It’s encouraging to see the critical 9th Grade On-Track numbers continue to rise.
- The rate of students going to college within 16 months of graduation declined nearly a full percentage point from 56.4% for the graduates of the Class of 2020 to 55.6% for the class of 2021. These declines are similar to overall declines in college enrollment seen in Oregon and nationwide and reflect data from when the global pandemic was at its peak. The decline is much smaller than the 5.4 percentage point drop reported last year.
- College going rates declined for most racial/ethnic groups, while increasing by 1.6 and 1.4 percentage points for students who are federally-identified as American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian, respectively.
- We have seen a decline in regular attendance in 2022-23, with the rate falling 2.0% from 2021-22. Rates of regular attendance remain significantly below pre-pandemic levels. We know that students aren’t benefiting from instruction when they are not in the classroom, so this is a serious concern for Oregon’s educators. Our Every Day Matters team is working with districts to address attendance concerns. Every Day Matters is a statewide initiative that works with schools and districts to boost attendance and student engagement by building relationships with students, families, and community members to address the root causes of chronic absenteeism, and include strategies such as hiring of community-school liaisons, family advocates, and school counselors.
What’s new on the At-A-Glance School and District Profiles this year?
- Prior year comparison information is back on the At-A-Glance School and District Profiles. On the front page of the profiles we display if an indicator rate increased or decreased and by how much compared to the prior year. Prior year comparison information was discontinued on the At-A-Glance School and District Profiles in 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 due to pandemic data disruptions.
- Added Social Worker rounded Full Time Equivalent to the At-A-Glance School and District Profiles.
- The At-A-Glance District Profiles, which are district specific, were revised to better align with Student Investment Account metrics.
- The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles now include data on students whose families serve in the military.
Background On The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles
The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles are available on the ODE’s webpage and school districts are required to make them available to their community.
The At-A-Glance School and District Profiles include graphics showing how a school or district compares to the statewide average in categories like regular attenders, graduation rates, median class size and more. The profiles were developed with extensive input from Oregon families, including families of historically underserved students. The data points represent a comprehensive approach to evaluating and measuring a school’s impact on students. In five minutes or less parents can get the comprehensive look at their school or district that they’ve been requesting.
