Wyoming's high school graduation rates are on the rise for the fifth straight year. That's according to the most recent graduation data released by the Wyoming Department of Education, or WDE.
The state saw a 1.5 percent increase from last year, for a graduation rate of 81.7.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow also recognized efforts to close the achievement gap. She said the four-year on-time graduation rate for Native American students increased this year.
"The gap between our tribal learners and all of our students closed by 4.79 percent this year," said Balow. "This is a significant improvement. We know that there is more work to do."
Balow recognized that increasing graduation rates are the result of hard work at the local level and focused interventions to help struggling students. The WDE recognized Campbell County School District #1 for bringing its graduation rate up five percent to 83 this year.
That district's superintendent Alex Ayers attributed the increase to efforts to foster a stronger sense of connection between students and the staff at their schools.
"We also made a slight increase in the number of counselors and principals at Campbell County High School and Thunder Basin High School," Ayers said, "giving our counselors, in particular, the opportunity to meet with every student several times each year."
Of the 15 school districts with an over 90 percent graduation rate, four of them were at 100 percent. There were also three districts in the state at 50 percent or below.
