Montgomery County Graduation Rates Dip

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ROCKVILLE, MD — After five straight years of climbing graduation rates, Montgomery County Public Schools saw a slight dip in the percentage of students earning their high school diploma last year, according to new state data.

The class of 2015 had a graduation rate of 89.36 percent, down slightly from the 89.69 percent rate in 2014. Maryland’s State Department of Education released statewide graduation rates last week.

The two prior years saw increases, with 88.34 percent of students graduating in 2013, and 87.40 percent graduating in 2012.

Statewide, a higher percentage of Maryland students earned high school diplomas in 2015 than at any other time in the state’s history, according to the data. As the graduation rate sets records, the dropout rate has reached an all-time low.

“Each student who graduates from high school is a success story, and those students, families, and schools should celebrate that success,” said Dr. Jack Smith, Interim State Superintendent of Schools, who was recently selected to become Montgomery County’s next schools superintendent. “It also is important to remember that a high school diploma is only the first step. We continue to strengthen our standards to better prepare each student for life beyond high school--be it further education, the workforce, or both.”

The four-year graduation rate reached 87 percent in 2015 -- 5 points better than the 82 percent rate registered in 2010, across Maryland.

Bethesda Magazine reports six of the county’s top-performing high schools had graduation rates above 95 percent last year: Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Poolesville, Thomas Wootton, Walt Whitman, Walter Johnson and Winston Churchill.

In contrast, seven county high schools had 2015 graduation rates less than 85 percent, including Gaithersburg (77.62 percent), John F. Kennedy (79.33 percent) and Northwood (81.03 percent).

Find a school by school listing of graduation rates on the state website.