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CMCSS graduation rates decline





The Rossview High School Class of 2021 reported a 96.3% graduation rate, the highest school in the county and above the county rate recorded at 93%.CHERI REEVES / Main Street Clarksville

The Rossview High School Class of 2021 reported a 96.3% graduation rate, the highest school in the county and above the county rate recorded at 93%.CHERI REEVES / Main Street Clarksville

The Tennessee Department of Education’s release of graduation rates for 2020-2021 shows a slight decline in Clarksville-Montgomery County School System, with 93% of its students graduating on time this year, compared to 94.4% last year.

The district’s graduation rate remained higher than the state’s graduation rate, which was 88.7% this past school year, a decline from the 89.6% rate in 2019-2020, according to data published by the state.

CMCSS school-by-school graduation rates showed Rossview High School with the highest graduation rate in the district, at 96.3% and the Kenwood High School graduation rate was reported the lowest at 89.4%, but still above the state’s rate.

The Tennessee Department of Education released the state’s findings to the public on Tuesday, Nov. 23, noting that 37 districts improved their graduation rates.

Anthony Johnson, CMCSS chief communications officer, said the difference of a percent or less can be caused by several factors, including students could be in need of a fifth year of high school to graduate; or, a large cohort of students with disabilities graduating with special education diplomas, which do not qualify in the numerator of the ESEA [Elementary and Secondary Education Act] graduation calculation.

 

 

Additional variables could be students moving from the district and not re-enrolling in high school at the next district; students moving from the district and enrolling in the HiSet/GED program; or, schools not being provided appropriate documentation necessary to remove a student from the cohort, Johnson said.

“All these things occur each year in CMCSS,” Johnson said. “The district works diligently with all students to afford them the greatest opportunity to graduate high school. The graduation rate reported follows the constraints of the ESEA Graduation Rate Calculation, not necessarily the outcomes for students.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic spanned the entirety of the 2020-21 academic year, the Tennessee Department of Education said it offers several interventions to mitigate learning loss and provide necessary student supports to ensure they were prepared for graduation and postsecondary success, such as summer programming, free ACT prep workshops and AP Access for All.

“Our state remains committed to swift and urgent action to mitigate the negative effects of COVID-19 on our students,” said Tennessee State Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “The department was prepared for the negative impacts of the pandemic on our statewide graduation rate, but we are confident that with the right investment and the partnership and dedication of our districts and schools, we can resume the upward trajectory in graduation rate and ensure we are preparing Tennessee students for success.”

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