On the heels of being named one of the nation's most innovative school divisions and a string of successes on key performance measures, Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) has reached an all-time high graduation rate and its lowest ever dropout rate.

VBCPS' On-Time Graduation (OTG) rate rose to 93.3 percent - the highest ever since data was first collected in 2008, according to Class of 2018 numbers released by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE). At the same time, the division's dropout rate dropped to the lowest level ever recorded and now stands at 3.8 percent. These are not only division records, they also beat the state performance of 91.6 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively.

In addition to these new overall records, a closer look at the data reveals impressive gains in key areas:

• All minority groups, students with disabilities and other student subgroups achieved higher graduation rates when compared to 2017. Those increases ranged from 0.1 to 3.9 percentage points.
• Economically disadvantaged students as a group posted a 96.5 percent graduation rate.
• Nine of the division's 11 comprehensive high schools had graduation rates above 90 percent. Kempsville High School had the division's highest one-year gain jumping from 87.1 percent to 91.9 percent. Of those 11 schools, Kellam High School boasted the highest OTG rate of 97.9 percent.
• The division's dropout rate has decreased every year. Specifically, Bayside and First Colonial high schools had the largest one-year drops with 1.7 and 2.5 percentage-point decreases, respectively, compared to 2017.

"Our graduation rate has increased nearly 5 percent in four years. This data, in one word, is remarkable. To see the number of graduating students grow year after year is evidence of countless hours our administrators, counselors, teachers and graduation coaches have spent working with our parents and our students directly and engaging them in their journey to graduation-from pre-K all the way through their senior year," said VBCPS Superintendent Dr. Aaron Spence. "Even more impressive is as we see these numbers increase, we are also seeing our indicators of academic achievement grow, which shows us we have more students performing at higher levels and excelling than ever before. While we have more work to do, it's important to acknowledge we are, right now, writing a truly exciting and groundbreaking chapter in the history of the division."

This latest record-setting data adds to the division's continued upward trend of student achievement data, including being fully accredited for a second consecutive year, having more students enrolling and excelling in Advanced Placement (AP) and dual enrollment courses, and having a record-high amount of college scholarships awarded to the Class of 2018.

Learn more about graduation or dropout rates by visiting the VDOE's website.

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Department of Communications and Community Engagement, [email protected]

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