New York state's overall high school graduation rate continues to rise slowly over time. But one-quarter of students statewide don’t graduate high school after four years. These statistics are according to the New York State Education Department’s release of high school graduation rates for 2011.
Last year’s high school graduation rate from high school is slightly better than the rate for 2010 and is up almost five percent from four years ago.
However, the gap between white students and minority students earning a diploma persists.
The rate for black students was 58.4 percent and it was 58 percent for Hispanic students, compared with 74 percent overall.
Despite the increases in overall graduation rates for all races, New York's Department of Education also says the number of students who finish high school ready for college or a career is significantly lower than the number of those earning diplomas.
The graduation rates for the state’s “big five” city school districts have mostly increased. That includes the city of Syracuse, which had a graduation rate of 48.4 percent, which was up two and a half percent from the previous year.
