David Churchhill receives his diploma at Valparaiso High School's graduation ceremony in June 2022.
Kouts Middle/Senior High School saw 100% of its 66 seniors graduate in 2022 while South Central Jr./Sr. High School and Valparaiso High School saw 98.77% and 98.53%, respectively, of their seniors graduating, according to data released last week by the Indiana Department of Education.
The three high schools boasted the highest graduation rates of all public schools in Northwest Indiana.
Valparaiso High had 476 seniors and 469 graduates, while South Central had 81 seniors and 80 graduates.
Other area schools with high graduation rates this year: Crown Point High School at 97.59% and Morgan Township Middle/High School at 98.39%. The five schools finished within the top 10% of Indiana high schools.
School City of Hammond, Northwest Indiana's largest public school district at around 11,500 students, graduated 66.42% of its seniors. The district has two high schools; Hammond Central's graduation rate was 75.78% and Morton's was 60.48%.
Overall, the graduation rate for seniors across Indiana in 2022 was 86.61%. That's strikingly similar to 2021, when it was 86.69%. The state attributed this flattening of graduation-rate growth to students continuing to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the disruptions it caused to learning.
"Graduating high school is an important milestone as students transition to their next step, whether that’s employment, enrollment or enlistment leading to service," Indiana Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said in a statement released alongside the data.
"As we seek new and innovative ways to ensure that students are best prepared for their future, we must continue to rethink how those four years are structured."
That restructuring, she said, means increasing the number of students who have access to a post-secondary credential before graduation, increasing access to work-study opportunities and providing flexibility for high schools on coursework.
While she acknowledged that the overall graduation rate has barely moved, Jenner noted that some specific demographics saw increases:
Black students: 77.05% in 2021, 77.52% in 2022.
Hispanic students: 82.66% in 2021, 83.86% in 2022.
English learners: 82.80% in 2021, 85.60% in 2022.
Special-education students: 74.52% in 2021, 76.39% in 2022.
Students who receive free and reduced-price meals: 82.84% in 2021, 83.74% in 2022.
Here's what graduation rates looked like at other district in Northwest Indiana:
- Lake Central School Corp.: 95.57%
- Griffith Public Schools: 84.62%
- Hanover Community School Corp.: 90.80%
- Merrillville Community School Corp.: 93.01%
- River Forest Community School Corp.: 86.36%
- Tri-Creek School Corp.: 96.79%
- Lake Ridge New Tech Schools: 83.22%
- School City of East Chicago: 66.0%
- Lake Station Community Schools: 92.63%
- Gary Community School Corp.: 72.08%
- School Town of Highland: 93.89%
- School Town of Munster: 96.73%
- School City of Hobart: 91.13%
- Michigan City Area Schools: 83.69%
- LaPorte Community School Corp.: 84.21%
- New Prairie United School Corp.: 97.15%
- MSD of New Durham Township: 93.06%
- South Central Community School Corp.: 98.77%
- Duneland School Corp.: 95.08%
- East Porter County School Corp.: 98.39%
- Porter Township School Corp.: 93.43%
- Union Township School Corp.: 96.83%
- MSD Boone Township: 96.25%
- Portage Township Schools: 93.78%
- North Newton School Corp.: 88.89%
- South Newton School Corp.: 79.66%
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