SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — American Indian/Alaska Native students in the Sioux Falls School District graduated on time in 2022 at a much lower rate than other students of color.
The district reports its on-time graduation and high school completion rates to the South Dakota Department of Education each year. Data for 2023 is not yet available.
The on-time graduation rate for American Indian/Alaska Native students was 42% in 2022. That’s about 25% lower than the 69% rate for Hispanic/Latino students. The Black/African American students graduated at 80%.
The 56 Asian students graduated at a rate higher (95%) than any other. The overall graduation rate for all students was 85% and 92% for white students.
The 2022 rate for on-time graduation was higher for American Indian/Alaska Native students than the 36% rate in 2021.
The data is also broken down by other categories.
Sixty-seven percent of economically disadvantaged students graduated on time in 2022. That’s a higher rate than students in foster care, homeless students and migrant students.
Fifty-three percent of the foster students in the district graduated on time. Forty-eight percent of the homeless students graduated on time. The migrant students graduated at a rate of 60%.
The district had more than 100 English Language Learner students and 78% of them graduated on time.
The overall on-time graduation rate in the district is 85% which is higher than the state average of 82%.
Nationally, the data from the U.S. Department of Education is from 2018-2019, which was an 86% graduation rate. The DOE describes the rates as the adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR) which is the percentage of public high school freshmen who graduate with a regular diploma within four years of starting 9th grade.
Public School Review lists the national average graduation rate from public schools at 87%.
The Annie E. Casey Foundation and South Dakota KIDS COUNT listed the state’s rates from 2013 through 2022. The rates were 82% and 83% in 2013 and 2014. From 2015 through 2020, the state rate was 84%. It was 83% in 2021.
When the rates of completing high school are reviewed, the rates improve in several categories. Completing high school means a student who has graduated or achieved the equivalent of a high school degree by the age of 21.
Sixty-four percent of the American Indian/Alaska Native students completed high school in 2022. In 2021, the percentage was 46%.
Seventy-two percent of homeless students completed high school.
The rate of high completion for foster students was slightly higher (55%) than for graduating on time (53%).
There was a 16% increase in the rate of high school completion for economically disadvantaged students at 83% compared to the 67% rate for graduating on time.
