Graduation rate dips statewide, on Long Island
Newsday, in a review of statewide graduation results over a 10-year period, found that 2023 was the only year in which rates decreased from the year before. Diploma numbers gradually rose from 78% in 2013 to 87% in 2022, before falling off a bit. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
New York State's latest high school graduation rates have fallen by a fraction for the first time in a decade, and numbers on Long Island have seen a slight decline as well, a Newsday analysis found.
Statewide, the portion of the Class of 2023 earning diplomas after bearing the brunt of the COVID pandemic dipped to 86.4% last year, from 87% in 2022, according to results posted by the state Education Department. In Nassau and Suffolk counties, rates edged downward to 92.2% from 92.6%.
Newsday reviewed statewide graduation results over a 10-year period and found that 2023 was the only year in which rates decreased from the year before. Diploma numbers gradually rose from 78% in 2013 to 87% in 2022 before falling off a bit. Results included both June and August graduates.
Education Department spokesman JP O'Hare noted that students in the 2023 class entered high school in 2019 "and saw their school year disrupted in significant and distinct ways due to the COVID pandemic." Effects included frequent closures of schools, extended periods of remote online instruction and cancellations of state exams.
O'Hare said the fractional decline in state graduation numbers was "consistent with national trends." He added that the decline was accompanied by an encouraging sign: The percentage of seniors still enrolled in school increased by a half-point, indicating they "are still engaged in their educational pursuits" despite obstacles raised by the pandemic.
One member of the Class of 2023 who succeeded despite the pandemic is Sean Andrade, 16. He graduated last year as salutatorian from Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park and is now a freshman majoring in math at Stony Brook University.
Andrade, in a phone interview, said one of the biggest adjustments for a student during school closures and reopenings was to relearn skills of time management as one shifted between home studies and school. One of the greatest satisfactions, he added, was to participate in senior class activities, including a graduation ceremony, as the pandemic wound down.
"I would say that it definitely had a large effect," Andrade said of the COVID outbreak. "I was also very lucky."
Under state rules, students generally must pass four or five Regents exams in order to get diplomas. However, large-scale exemptions from exams were granted as a form of pandemic relief for the 172,502 members in the Class of 2023.
According to state records, 87,855 students were granted three or more exemptions, 46,415 got two exemptions, and 24,561 got one exemption.
On the Island, a review found regional graduation rates climbed from 91% in Nassau and 89% in Suffolk in 2014 to 94% in Nassau and 91% in Suffolk in 2022. Rates then leveled off last year.
At the same time, the number of Long Island students awarded advanced Regents diplomas declined slightly — from 62% in 2022 to 58.5% in 2023. Statewide, numbers dropped from 41.8% to 36.2%.
Advanced credentials indicate students have gone beyond minimum requirements to take coursework in subjects such as trigonometry, chemistry and physics. Local school districts with high numbers of students earning advanced diplomas in 2023 included Cold Spring Harbor at 94.4%; Jericho, 91.3%; East Williston, 89.6%; and Roslyn, 88%.
In Albany, a state advisory commission has recommended use of alternative measures besides Regents exams to determine if students qualify for diplomas. One aim is to boost graduations, or as O'Hare put it, "create a more inclusive learning environment, while maintaining rigor and enhancing critical thinking skills."
Some details of the plan are to be announced in the fall. Meanwhile, standardized exams still have supporters.
"I know throughout the state there's a lot of debate about Regents exams," said Jill Gierasch, superintendent of Cold Spring Harbor schools. "But at Cold Spring Harbor, we place great value on such exams. We feel they prepare students for postsecondary studies and for other assessments. We're really proud of our students and their steady growth."
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized the graduation rate comparison for Long Island high schools.
New York State's latest high school graduation rates have fallen by a fraction for the first time in a decade, and numbers on Long Island have seen a slight decline as well, a Newsday analysis found.
Statewide, the portion of the Class of 2023 earning diplomas after bearing the brunt of the COVID pandemic dipped to 86.4% last year, from 87% in 2022, according to results posted by the state Education Department. In Nassau and Suffolk counties, rates edged downward to 92.2% from 92.6%.
Newsday reviewed statewide graduation results over a 10-year period and found that 2023 was the only year in which rates decreased from the year before. Diploma numbers gradually rose from 78% in 2013 to 87% in 2022 before falling off a bit. Results included both June and August graduates.
Education Department spokesman JP O'Hare noted that students in the 2023 class entered high school in 2019 "and saw their school year disrupted in significant and distinct ways due to the COVID pandemic." Effects included frequent closures of schools, extended periods of remote online instruction and cancellations of state exams.
WHAT TO KNOW
- New York State's latest high school graduation rates have fallen by a fraction for the first time in a decade.
- Graduation rates on Long Island also fell slightly, according to data for the state's Class of 2023 — a class that bore the brunt of the COVID pandemic.
- The number of Long Island students awarded advanced Regents diplomas also declined slightly from 2022 to 2023.
O'Hare said the fractional decline in state graduation numbers was "consistent with national trends." He added that the decline was accompanied by an encouraging sign: The percentage of seniors still enrolled in school increased by a half-point, indicating they "are still engaged in their educational pursuits" despite obstacles raised by the pandemic.
One member of the Class of 2023 who succeeded despite the pandemic is Sean Andrade, 16. He graduated last year as salutatorian from Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park and is now a freshman majoring in math at Stony Brook University.
Andrade, in a phone interview, said one of the biggest adjustments for a student during school closures and reopenings was to relearn skills of time management as one shifted between home studies and school. One of the greatest satisfactions, he added, was to participate in senior class activities, including a graduation ceremony, as the pandemic wound down.
"I would say that it definitely had a large effect," Andrade said of the COVID outbreak. "I was also very lucky."
Under state rules, students generally must pass four or five Regents exams in order to get diplomas. However, large-scale exemptions from exams were granted as a form of pandemic relief for the 172,502 members in the Class of 2023.
According to state records, 87,855 students were granted three or more exemptions, 46,415 got two exemptions, and 24,561 got one exemption.
On the Island, a review found regional graduation rates climbed from 91% in Nassau and 89% in Suffolk in 2014 to 94% in Nassau and 91% in Suffolk in 2022. Rates then leveled off last year.
At the same time, the number of Long Island students awarded advanced Regents diplomas declined slightly — from 62% in 2022 to 58.5% in 2023. Statewide, numbers dropped from 41.8% to 36.2%.
Advanced credentials indicate students have gone beyond minimum requirements to take coursework in subjects such as trigonometry, chemistry and physics. Local school districts with high numbers of students earning advanced diplomas in 2023 included Cold Spring Harbor at 94.4%; Jericho, 91.3%; East Williston, 89.6%; and Roslyn, 88%.
In Albany, a state advisory commission has recommended use of alternative measures besides Regents exams to determine if students qualify for diplomas. One aim is to boost graduations, or as O'Hare put it, "create a more inclusive learning environment, while maintaining rigor and enhancing critical thinking skills."
Some details of the plan are to be announced in the fall. Meanwhile, standardized exams still have supporters.
"I know throughout the state there's a lot of debate about Regents exams," said Jill Gierasch, superintendent of Cold Spring Harbor schools. "But at Cold Spring Harbor, we place great value on such exams. We feel they prepare students for postsecondary studies and for other assessments. We're really proud of our students and their steady growth."
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized the graduation rate comparison for Long Island high schools.
