Santa Fe Public Schools Dramatically Increases its Graduation Rate, Surpasses the State’s Rate for a Second Year

By SFPS

The Santa Fe Public Schools’ (SFPS) four-year graduation rate for 2019-2020 is 86.3 percent, marking dramatic growth and surpassing the state’s graduation rate for a second year.  SFPS’ 2019-2020 graduation rate is nine percent higher than the statewide rate of 77 percent.  Last year, SFPS surpassed the state’s rate by three percent.  Since 2016-17, the district’s graduation rate has increased 17 percent.   In the same period, the state’s rate has increased six percent.

 

“This is a true watershed moment for our district, students and families.  Our soaring graduation rate marks dramatic growth and reflects the diligent efforts of educators, students and the entire SFPS community to ensure future opportunities.  When students graduate from high school, doors open for postsecondary learning and engaging careers.  In so many ways, our graduation rate is more than a statistic.  It is a representation of lives in the making,” said Superintendent Dr. Veronica C. Garcia.

 

“In the midst of this challenging school year, this announcement is a time for celebration and congratulations!  I offer my deepest thanks to our board, principals, faculty, staff, school and district leadership, volunteers, partners and the community for a job well done.  Our work to get students across the finish line is truly on the mark.  It takes a village, and we’ve got one heckuva village in Santa Fe,” said Superintendent Dr. Garcia.  “Surpassing the state’s graduation rate by nine percent is proof that remarkable things are happening in the Santa Fe Public Schools.”

“I want to congratulate all the graduates, families, teachers and staff who have worked so hard for this.  We have an exceptional team and community around SFPS, and we are seeing the results. This work isn’t easy, but it is entirely worthwhile, and we will continue to build momentum, together!” said SFPS Board of Education President Kate Noble.

 

SFPS’ 2019-2020 graduation rate of 86.3 percent is well ahead of the 75 percent target graduation rate projected by the district for 2019-2020 in its 2018-2023 strategic plan.

 

The graduation rates for SFPS’ high schools reached their highest marks in five years.  “I am so incredibly proud of our high school communities,” said Superintendent Dr. Garcia.

 

Capital High School’s graduation rate grew to 83 percent, a five percent increase, Santa Fe High School’s rate grew to 88 percent, an 11 percent increase, Early College Opportunities High School’s graduation rate grew to 84 percent, a 20 percent increase, the Academy at Larragoite’s (which is now Desert Sage Academy) rate grew to 91 percent, a 20 percent increase, Mandela International Magnet School’s graduation rate grew to 99 percent, an 11 percent gain, and Academy for Technology and the Classics grew to 99 percent, a four percent gain.

 

“Mandela International Magnet School’s graduation rate of nearly 100 percent is sensational,” said Superintendent Dr. Garcia.  “I blinked twice when I saw this.  It’s a staggering achievement.”

 

Mandela International Magnet School Principal Head Learner Randy Grillo said, “I am very proud of the graduating class of 2020.  Our graduation rate is a reflection of the hard work of those students and the dedication of our counseling team and entire staff to ensure success for each Mandela International Magnet School student.”

 

Capital High School Principal Jaime Holladay said, “We are proud of the growth our school has made in terms of our graduation rate.  It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our students, families and staff.  We realize that we still have room for growth, and will continue to implement AVID, our college and career readiness system, coupled with actualizing the power of meaningful student-teacher relationships to continue to improve.”

Santa Fe High School Principal Carl Marano said, “Our increased graduation rate is a testament to the entire staff at Santa Fe High and the dedication to our students.  The tireless hours put in by our classroom teachers, support staff and administration is all worth it as we will continue to put students first.  We will continue working to improve our graduation rates.  I want to thank all of our students for their hard work and dedication and their families for supporting them along the way.”

Early College Opportunities High School Principal Michael Hagele said, “I am extremely proud of this increase. It represents a major team effort on the part of our students, families, teachers, school and district staff and community partners.”

Desert Sage Academy Principal Alice Braden said, “The school has been working with the program Check and Connect and has assigned teacher mentors to help students with their attendance and with their progress in classes.  The flexibility of our scheduling along with the online curriculum also provides students with opportunities to work towards graduation outside of school hours.  Our small school setting allows us to build strong relationships with students and to better identify and support individual student needs.

Academy for Technology and the Classics Principal Jason Morgan said, “Today’s graduation data for the class of 2020 reflects the tremendous, collective work of our students and every member of our staff in all grades and roles. It is news like this that reminds us that high academic expectations coupled with high levels of support and care is what truly cultivates fearless learners. Congratulations to all of the students and staff across the district high schools.”

SFPS’ 2019-2020 graduation rate by student cohort shows that all subgroups with the exception of Native Americans exceed the statewide graduation rates for those subgroups.

 

“We are deeply committed to the success of all students.  We cannot succeed as a district and a state until all students graduate ready for college and careers,” said Superintendent Dr. Garcia.

 

SFPS’ four-year graduation rate for 2018-2019 was 78 percent, compared to the state graduation rate of 75 percent statewide.

A statewide look at districts with more than 10,000 students shows that SFPS is one of four districts that saw growth in their graduation rates. SFPS’ graduation rate of 86.3% is second only to Rio Rancho Public Schools (88.3%) in this category of districts.

Superintendent Dr. Garcia credited three areas for SFPS’ improved graduation rate:  an instructional project to identify essential skills and use of End-of-Course exams for seniors to meet graduation requirements, cooperatively working with high school principals and their teams to formulate and identify plans for each student and SFPS’ commitment to data quality and an improved process to collect student information and monitor progress toward target graduation rates.