In the past, Tennessee was rarely cited in a positive manner in national educational surveys. No more. The state was named Monday as one of two -- New York is the other -- where notable improvements in high school graduation rates contributed to the betterment of the national rate. Progress in Hamilton County mirrors the statewide gains.
Gains in the two states helped improve the national rate by 3.5 percent from 2001-2009, the period studied by the America's Promise Alliance, sponsor of the Grad Nation summit in the nation's capital. That put the national rate in 2009 at 75 percent, a number than obviously requires improvement. The alliance, a children's advocacy group, hopes to lift the rate to a more acceptable 90 percent by 2020.
That's an admirable target but one that will be hard to reach despite recent progress. Currently, only Wisconsin has reached that level, though Vermont appears likely to do so soon. Tennessee's rate in 2009 was 77.4 percent, a huge jump from the 59.6 percent recorded in 2002. In Hamilton County, the graduation rate in 2011 was 81.7 percent, well above both state and national rates.
While there is some debate among educators and statisticians about the best way to measure and to compare the graduation rates, the report released Monday provides a well-vetted review of the situation.
It shows that rising rates in some places, like Hamilton County and Tennessee, unfortunately are not a universal trend. According to Monday's report, 10 states showed declines. Included in that list are states often considered front-runners in public education -- California. Connecticut and New Jersey. Nevada's rate was particularly abysmal at just 56 percent. Low and declining graduation rates will prove costly to the states and nation in the short and long term.
Improving high school graduation rates is essential if the nation's rising generation of workers is to compete effectively in the contemporary, technology-oriented marketplace. A high school diploma provides entree to two-and four-year schools and universities. Training and degrees earned there lead to higher personal incomes, more fulfilling lives and higher tax revenues and less dependence on government services for the states. Those surely are worthwhile personal and public goals.
Improving graduation rates is not easy. It requires commitment from parents and educators, expanded community involvement and a renewed willingness to invest in academic and other programs, especially those designed to promote reading readiness in younger students and to reduce dropouts among older ones. In some places, obviously, there is more willingness to do so than in others.
A perfect high school graduation rate is likely unattainable, but that should not eliminate it as a goal. Schools can and should continue to fine-tune programs that reduce dropouts and improve instruction to raise the number of students who earn a diploma -- even in the face of the cultural challenges many youngsters find at home. Rates can be improved, as gains in Tennessee and Hamilton County confirm. Still, higher graduation numbers should be the goal. That will occur only if elected officials and those they serve unite behind the effort to raise them.