HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Congratulations are in order as Hillsborough County Public Schools reached a new all-time best graduation rate of 89.2 percent all amid a pandemic, according to the school system.
The school system said it has its school-based leaders, teachers, counselors, and support professionals to thank for the accomplishment.
"I am so excited for our community and our organization for obtaining the highest graduation rate in district history," Hillsborough County Public Schools Superintendent Addison Davis said in a statement on Tuesday. "This is in direct correlation to the hard work and dedication exhibited by our students, caregivers, teachers, school leaders, school counselors, support professionals, and district staff."
Many schools stood out in the all-around accomplishment. This includes:
- Spoto High School has for the first time in its history reached a 92.1 percent graduation rate. This represents a 7.2 percentage point year-to-year increase, the largest improvement in the district.
- Armwood High School demonstrated a 5.5 percentage point year-to-year increase with an 87.9 percent graduation rate.
- Leto High School now has a 96.5 percent graduation rate, the highest graduation rate in this school's history.
- King High School has increased to 89.7 percent, also the highest in the school's history.
- Newsome High School once again has the distinction of the highest graduation rate in our district at 98.9 percent, an increase again from last year.
Hillsborough County Public Schools also saw an increase in graduation rates for minority groups of students:
- African American students had a 1.9 percentage point increase in graduation rates, rising almost 10 percentage points in the last 5 years.
- Hispanic learners achieved a 7.4 percentage point increase over the last 5 years.
- Students with disabilities have steadily increased their graduation rates 16.6 percentage points over the last 5 years.
- Economically disadvantaged students illustrated impressive gains, with a 3.9 percentage point year-over-year jump - 9 percentage points over 5 years
You can see the full list of high school graduation rates in the district below or by clicking here.
In addition to Hillsborough County Schools, Pinellas County Schools saw another record-breaking graduation rate of 92 percent.
Other accomplished school systems include Hernando County at 91 percent, Pasco County at 91 percent, Sarasota County at 91 percent, Hillsborough County at 89.2 percent, Polk County at 85.3 percent and Manatee County at 85.1 percent.