Implementing Graduation Counts: State Progress to Date

In 2005 governors of all 50 states signed the Graduation Counts Compact and made an unprecedented commitment to a common method for calculating each state's high school graduation rate. In addition to agreeing to a common formula for calculating the graduation rate, the governors committed to leading efforts to improve state data collection, reporting, and analysis; reporting additional indicators of outcomes for students; and reporting annually on their progress toward improved high school graduation, completion, and dropout data. The governors undertook this commitment because they understand the imperative to gather more accurate, comparable data on how many of their students graduate from high school on time. They also understand the need to ensure all students graduate from high school and do so ready for college, work, and civic life. Governors know, however, they cannot fulfill this commitment to their students without a clearer understanding of the scope of the problem. The National Governors Association (NGA) supported the development of the Graduation Counts Compact through its Task Force on State High School Graduation Data and a companion Graduation Counts task force report.

To fulfill the final element of the Graduation Counts Compact—reporting progress annually—the NGA Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) gathered information from governors' offices and state education agencies about their plans and actions to implement the Compact graduation rate. The NGA Center will continue to provide reports on state implementation to highlight state progress and help build public and political will where progress has been slow. To acknowl-edge progress as it occurs, the NGA Center will post updates on state progress on the NGA Center Web site as new information is provided.

In 2006 13 states will report their graduation rate publicly according to the Compact formula; two states are using the Compact formula with local cohort data; and one state is reporting asophisticated estimate consistent with the recommendations in the Graduation Counts taskforce report. By 2010, 39 states plan to report a graduation rate using the Compact definition. These states will begin reporting as they develop four or five years of longitudinal data capable of tracking students' progress from their first-time entry into the ninth grade through their exit from high school. Several states still are determining in what year they will report. Two states do not plan to report according to the Compact formula. Two states have codified the Compact rate: Colorado did so through state board regulations and Maryland did so through legislation.

Although many states already were taking steps to improve their high school graduation data before their governors signed the Graduation Counts Compact, the agreement has provided impetus for some states to start reporting a more accurate rate immediately, for other states to redouble their efforts to get a longitudinal data system fully operational, and for most states toseek comparability in the nuances of how they implement and calculate the Compact graduation rate. As the NGA Center gathered information about implementation, many stateofficials asked questions about certain aspects of the Compact formula and definitions and were eager for guidance to help ensure comparable implementation across states. This report also provides that additional guidance.