More high schoolers than ever graduated in Georgia last year.
According to the State Department of Education, 84.4% of the class of 2023 ended their year in caps and gowns last spring. This figure crept up from 84.1% for the class of 2022.
In Atlanta Public Schools (APS), those numbers went from 84.4% for the class of 2022 to 86.6% for the class of 2023.
These rates are an all-time high for both APS and the state overall.
“I’m incredibly proud of Georgia’s high-school seniors – and the teachers, leaders, and families who have supported them to produce these results,” said state school superintendent Richard Woods. “It’s important to remember that the positive news we’ve received lately – from this historic-high graduation rate to Georgia students beating the national average on the SAT – is more than just numbers.”
But graduation rates alone are a dangerous narrative for success, said Tiffany Fink, the Director for School Equality at the local nonprofit Equity in Education.
“[Students are] going to go to college, but when they get to college, they’re gonna be forced to take some remedial classes,” she said. “When students have to take those remedial classes, they’re more likely to drop out–they’re more likely to leave school with debt.”
Georgia ranks third in the nation in student loan debt per borrower. Collectively, the state’s residents owe about $70 billion dollars.
According to the 2022-23 Georgia Milestones, also released this month, only 42% of eighth graders were considered proficient or above in English Language Arts. In Mathematics, that share of proficient students drops to 36%.
Fink said that these numbers parallel the state of Atlanta public high schools and other metropolitan centers across the country; it’s mostly students of color who are struggling.
“When we promote students without them having the actual skills they need for the next…
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