by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
The graduation rate in Sartell in 2015 reached an all-time record and is 15 percent better than the state average.
The Sartell-St. Stephen rate is 99.2 percent of students graduating, according to numbers released Feb. 22 by the Minnesota Department of Education.
In the Sartell-St. Stephen School District, there were 259 students graduating in the Class of ’15. In 2013, the graduation rate was 97.2 percent. In 2014, the rate was 96 percent. The rates have been consistently above state averages for the past five years.
That good local news extends statewide with more Minnesota students graduating than ever before. With 54,200 graduates in 2015, the rate statewide last year was 81.9 percent. The rates for students of color have also continued to rise.
During the past five years, the rate in Minnesota has grown by 6.4 percentage points, up from 75.5 percent in 2010.
“We are very proud to have such outstanding graduation rates,” said Sartell-St. Stephen Superintendent Dr. Jeff Schwiebert. “These rates show the efforts of our students, families and educators throughout their school career, from early childhood to commencement. As a district, we have been very strategic and intentional about working with each and every individual student which all contribute to this measure.”
Minnesota Commissioner of Education Brenda Cassellius also praised graduation rates, statewide.
“Reaching our goal of a statewide graduation rate of 90 percent does not happen in one year,” Cassellius said. “It’s important to look at trends over time, and since 2010 we have seen the number of students graduating high school increase steadily every year.”
With more students of color graduating across the board, Minnesota is seeing unprecedented gap closure between white students and students of color. Since 2010, Minnesota has closed the graduation gap by 12 percentage points.
The following are rates for students of color:
American Indian students: 61.9 percent, up 7.7 percent since 2010.
Asian/Pacific Islander students: 82.7 percent, up 12.7 percent since 2010.
Black students: 62 percent, up 17.8 percent since 2010.
Hispanic students: 65.6 percent, up 17.8 percent since 2010.
English learners saw a slight decrease in graduation rates statewide, but they too are up 14.3 percentage points since 2010.
During the past five years, Minnesota has placed heavy emphasis on improving graduation rates. It did so through a number of innovative programs, some geared to at-risk students using intervention strategies.
