Superintendent Alan Ingram said the declining graduation rate was tied to the state’s boosting of standards for passing the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test, a requirement for graduation.
Alan IngramSPRINGFIELD – High school graduation rates rose in 2011 for the fifth year statewide, but Springfield was excluded from the trend.
A report by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education showed that 83.4 percent of four-year high school students graduated last year, an increase of 1.3 percent from 2010.
The statewide dropout also improved last year, with 2.7 percent of students quitting school – the lowest figure in 20 years, according to the study.
In terms of race, 43 percent of dropouts were white, 36 percent Hispanic, 15.5 percent African American, and 3.3 percent Asian, according to the report, which found 56.4 percent of dropouts were from low income families.
Gov. Deval L. Patrick said the trends are encouraging, but more needs to be done.
“I’m proud of the progress we have made, but we won’t be satisfied until we have a system that closes the achievement gap and prepares all of our students for success,” Patrick said.
In Springfield, the graduation rate was 52.1 percent, down from 53 percent last year. The dropout rate was 11.7, higher than the 10.5 figure from 2010.
Superintendent Alan J. Ingram said the declining graduation rate was tied to the state’s boosting of standards for passing the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test, a requirement for graduation.
“We expected that would likely have a short-term effect on the graduation rate,” said Ingram, adding that reversing the trend is a top priority.
“We cannot and will not make excuses,” the superintendent said, adding: “It is important for all of us to understand the strength of the tide we are swimming against.
In Holyoke, the high school dropout rate increased slightly in 2011 from the previous year, to 9.8 percent from 9.5 percent. The graduation rate has hovered near 50 percent in recent years, and was 49.5 percent in 2011.
Mayor Alex B. Morse, who is chairman of the School Committee, said changes obviously are needed at the city’s two high schools because the low rates show the status quo isn’t working.
“The numbers aren’t improving because we keep doing things the same way over and over,” Morse said.
West Springfield High School Principal Michael J. Richard said the 5.1 percent dropout rate his school had last year is something educators want to work on.
“That is not the direction we want to move in. We are looking to lower than number, not increase it,” Richard said.
In Agawam, where the dropout rate was 1.9 percent for the last two years, high school principal Steven P. Lemanski said the school monitors students at risk.
“We set up a net to help kids so they don’t fall,” Lemanski said.
Ludlow School Committee member James P. Harrington said Ludlow traditionally has a low student drop-out rate.
“Even if there is one student, you wonder what went wrong,” he said.
Harrington said Ludlow officials are more concerned with tracking who goes to two-year versus four-year colleges and whether they complete their degree programs.
“It’s difficult to find out what happens to our students after they leave here,” he said. “We have been trying to work with HCC and STCC.”
“We find that a lot of our students choose two-year schools because of the cost,” he said.
In Monson, Superintendent Patrice L. Dardenne said he was pleased to see the dropout rate drop, from 2.7 to 1.4.
“This is the lowest they’ve been in the last three years,” Dardenne said. “It’s a good sign.”
Staff writers Mike Plaisance, Sandra Constantine, Lori Stabile and Suzanne McLaughlin contributed to this story.