This is appauling! And they are PROUD of these numbers! 51% Graduation Rate

Statewide

Overall graduation rates for black and Hispanic students improved from the previous year, but there is still a large difference between white and minority students, state education officials said. The percentage of graduates after four years was 58 percent for black students, up from 56 the previous year, and 57 percent for Hispanics, up from 55 percent. The difference in graduation rates between black and white students decreased from 30 percentage points in the class that entered high school in 2001 to 26 points for those who began high school in 2006. During the same time period, the gap between Hispanic and white students fell from 33 percentage points to 27 percentage points. More white students are graduating with Regents diplomas or Regents diplomas with Advanced Designation than minority students, who often graduate with local diplomas, officials said. For the first time, the state released a new measure for judging high schools that gauges their college readiness using standardized test scores. Most districts saw significant gaps between their traditional graduation rate and the new measure. The new measure is based on Regents research showing that 44 percent of first-time students at two-year colleges and 13 percent of first-time students at four-year institutions took remedial classes in 2007. Students who graduate high school with a score below 80 on a math Regents and below 75 on the English exam are likely to require such remediation.”New York has some of the highest performing schools and districts in the country, but today’s data makes clear that we have tremendous work to do to reduce the dropout rate, close a stubbornly persistent racial achievement gap and ensure that more of our graduates are prepared for college and the workforce,” Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch said in a statement.— Gannett News Service

Read the rest: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20110615/NEWS01/106150329/Rochester-School-District-s-graduation-rate-rises