1. ACROSS ALL STUDENTS IN VENTURA COUNTY, GRADUATION RATES INCREASED AND DROPOUT RATES DECREASED. [Chart 1]

2. ALL STUDENT SUBGROUPS WITH MORE THAN 100 STUDENTS SHOW AN INCREASE IN GRADUATION RATES AND A DECREASE IN DROPOUT RATES IN 2011. [Charts 2 and 3]

On June 27th, 2012, the California Department of Education released the 2010-11 graduate, dropout and four-year cohort data reports. Ventura County data shows local educators have successfully increased the graduation rate and decreased the dropout rate to match or exceed federal growth targets. [chart 1]
The goal established under the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a cohort graduation rate of 90% by the year 2019. Cohort graduation rate is defined as the percentage of students who graduate from secondary school with a regular diploma in four years. Ventura County high schools are held accountable for making progress towards the 90% graduation rate on an annual basis.

Ventura County data for 2010-11 shows that all subgroups with more than 100 students increased their graduation rates [chart 2] and decreased their dropout rates [chart 3]. Some of the largest sub-group improvements were made by English Learners, Students with Disabilities and Socioeconomically Disadvantaged students. While the data demonstrates strong growth, these sub-groups will continue to be a focus for local educators if students are to meet or exceed federal growth targets.

The recently released data allows districts and schools to compare the two four-year cohort data sets and determine the success of programs designed to increase graduation rates and decrease the dropout rates.

The report is available on the Accountability Progress Report Web page at: www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ay/index.asp.