Georgia’s graduation rate in 2010 surpassed the 80 percent benchmark for the first time, though most Northwest Georgia high schools fell short of the state average.
Whitfield County reached its own milestone with all three of its high schools tallying graduation rates above 80 percent for the first time, officials said.
Seven years ago, when the state began a campaign to improve graduation numbers, Whitfield County’s rate was just 49.9 percent and the statewide rate was 63.3 percent.
Today, spurred by the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, Georgia schools have experienced dramatic improvement across the board. After summer’s retesting, graduations and appeals were included in this fall’s updated 2010 numbers, the state achieved an 80.8 percent graduation rate.
For the 2009-10 school year, a total of 91,561 students received diplomas.