PraiseIndy.com analyzed the African-American graduation rates in the school districts with the largest number of Black high school student, in Indianapolis/Marion County and the suburbs. Of the twelve districts analyzed by PraiseIndy.com, African-American graduation rates rose in ten; declining in just two districts.
The combined Black graduation rate of those twelve districts for the Class of 2009 was 66.5%; with 2,371 graduating in four years out of the 3,566 that began as freshmen four years earlier.
Though two-third of Blacks in the twelve largest Indianapolis area districts graduated on time, that doesn’t mean the Black dropout rate was 34%. On the contrary, only 15.5% of Blacks in the Class of 20-09 dropped out.
A nearly equal percentage, 15.2%, remained in school extra months to complete their studies. Just 1.4% of Blacks in the Class of 2009 received Special Education Certificates, while 0.7% earned Certificates of Completion and 0.7% earned GED.
Black Avon High School students had the highest graduation rate of area school districts at 90.9%, followed by Pike High School’s Black graduation rate of 85.6%. Hamilton Southeastern was next at a 83.5% Black student graduation rate, followed by Decatur Township with an 83.3% Black student graduation rate, Lawrence Township a 79.7% Black graduation rate, Washington Township a 79.1% Black graduation rate and Brownsburg with a 78.8% Black graduation rate..
Black graduation rates fell sharply in Franklin Township and were off slightly in IPS. Both districts had the lowest Black graduation rates – IPS at 49.3% and Franklin Township at 52.9%.
The percentage of the Blacks in the Class of 2009 who dropped out varied. IPS had the highest Black dropout rate at 27.1%, followed by Franklin Township at 20.6%, Warren Township 12.8% and Perry Township 10.4%.
Graduation rates in Indiana are computed by tracking each individual student in a high school’s freshman class for four years. Students not included in the graduate rate are not all dropouts. They include students who receive a GED diploma, or a certificate of Completion, or drop out.
Below is a Table comparing the percentage of Black students in statewide and in key Indianapolis school districts who graduated from high school within four years over the last four school years.
CLASS OF 2009 BLACK FOUR YEAR GRADUATION RATES
MAJOR INDIANAPOLIS AREA SCHOOL DISTRICTS
Table Compilation©2010 WTLC/Radio One.
| SCHOOL CORPORATION |
Class 2009 |
Class 2008 |
Class 2007 |
Class 2006 |
| STATEWIDE |
65.9 |
59.5 |
56.7 |
58.5 |
| MSD Decatur Township |
83.3 |
58.7 |
67.9 |
57.6 |
| MSD Franklin Township |
52.9 |
69.2 |
51.4 |
32.3 |
| MSD Lawrence Township |
79.7 |
72.4 |
71.7 |
72.8 |
| MSD Perry Township |
71.4 |
68.9 |
59.8 |
47.9 |
| MSD Pike Township |
85.6 |
72.0 |
69.3 |
67.6 |
| MSD Warren Township |
67.3 |
60.9 |
72.1 |
73.4 |
| MSD Washington Township |
79.1 |
75.8 |
77.3 |
75.7 |
| MSD Wayne Township |
74.8 |
65.0 |
65.8 |
59.5 |
| Indianapolis Public Schools |
49.3 |
50.1 |
47.0 |
53.2 |
| Hamilton Southeastern Schools |
83.5 |
77.8 |
79.6 |
N/A |
| Avon Community Schools |
90.9 |
69.4 |
84.4 |
N/A |
| Brownsburg Community Schools |
78.8 |
74.1 |
N/A |
N/A |
