Boston schools notch graduation rate record

More than four-fifths of Boston Public School seniors graduated last year, breaking a 20-year district record.

In all, 81.3% of the district’s eligible students earned a diploma from high school, new state data shows. That’s nearly two percentage points higher than the previous year, or 400 more students. But Boston still lags behind the statewide average of 89.3% students graduating in four years.

“We’re celebrating some remarkable progress here in Boston,” Mayor Michelle Wu said at a press conference Monday. “We got here by ensuring that every single student in every single classroom is seeing grade-level content and getting the support they need to thrive.”

The mayor appeared with School Superintendent Mary Skipper at Dearborn STEM Academy, where nearly a third of upper-level students participate in the Early College program, which allows them to earn higher education credits while in high school. Wu pointed to the program as a factor in the increased graduation rate.

She also said multi-lingual learners were among the students seeing the highest graduation gains, Wu said.

Skipper said a key reason for this year's improvement was “redesigning alternative education” to target students at high risk of dropping out, including English learners and students in special education.

The improved graduation rate coincides with just a 3.6% dropout rate. That’s the lowest the district has seen since it the pandemic-impacted year of 2020-21, when it was 2%.

“If Boston is going to be a home for everyone, then Boston Public Schools must be a home for every student and their families,” Wu said. “No student should be missing from our classrooms.”

The district in recent years has prioritized Early College and opportunities for students to learn career skills. Wu and Skipper also championed efforts like a reengagement center where staff knock on doors to reach high school dropouts.

Statewide, 1.8% of students dropped out of school last year.