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- Definition: Percentage of public school students who do not complete high school with their graduating class, by race/ethnicity (e.g., in 2021, 10.9% of Hispanic/Latino students from the graduating class in California did not complete high school). Use caution when comparing data for 2016 and earlier years—annotated with an asterisk (*)—against 2017 and later.
- Data Source: California Dept. of Education, Dropouts by Race and Gender (Jun. 2017) & Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate and Outcome Data (May 2022).
- Footnote: Years presented are the final year of a school year (e.g., 2020-21 is shown as 2021). Students who do not complete high school are those who do not receive a regular high school diploma or other credential, do not transfer to an adult education program or community college before the end of the fourth year, and do not remain enrolled after the end of the fourth year. The graduating class, or four-year adjusted cohort, is composed of students entering Grade 9 for the first time, adjusted for students who subsequently transfer in, transfer out, or pass away during Grade 9 or the following three years. Prior to 2017, students transferring to adult education programs or community colleges were excluded from the graduating class. Due to changes in methodology, the Dept. of Education recommends that data for 2016 and earlier years—annotated here with an asterisk (*)—should not be compared with 2017 and later. Race/ethnicity is missing or not reported for some students; as a result, sums across categories may be lower than totals. The notation S refers to percentages that have been suppressed because there were fewer than 20 students not completing high school in that group, to numbers (for 2016* and earlier) that have been suppressed because there were fewer than 11 students not completing high school in that group, and to numbers (for 2017 and later) that have been suppressed because there were fewer than 11 students in the graduating class in that group. N/A means that data are not available.
Learn More About High School Graduation
- Measures of High School Graduation on Kidsdata.org
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On kidsdata.org, high school graduation is measured by the number and percentage of public school students from the graduating class (the four-year adjusted cohort) who receive a regular high school diploma. These data are available for the state, counties, and school districts overall and, at the state and county level, by gender and by race/ethnicity.
Kidsdata.org also provides the number and percentage of students who do not complete high school with their graduating class, overall and by race/ethnicity.Some students from the graduating class are neither high school graduates nor non-completers. These include students who receive a General Educational Development (GED) certificate or special education certificate of completion, those who remain enrolled after the end of the fourth year, and, for some years, those who pass the California High School Proficiency Exam, receive an adult education high school diploma, or transfer to an adult education program or community college before the end of the fourth year. See kidsdata.org's indicator footnotes for more information. -
- High School Graduation
- Disconnected Youth
- Pupil Support Services
- School Climate
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- Academic Motivation (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- School Connectedness (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- School Supports (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- Caring Relationships with Adults at School (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- High Expectations from Adults at School (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- Meaningful Participation at School (Student Reported), by Grade Level
- Students Are Motivated to Learn (Staff Reported)
- School Motivates Students to Learn (Staff Reported)
- School Is a Supportive and Inviting Place to Learn (Staff Reported)
- Adults at School Care About Students (Staff Reported)
- Adults at School Believe in Student Success (Staff Reported)
- Math Proficiency
- Reading Proficiency
- College Eligibility
- Why This Topic Is Important
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Graduating from high school is associated with a range of positive life outcomes, from better employment and income prospects to better health and life expectancy (1). Although many young people who do not receive a high school diploma go on to earn an equivalency degree, such as a GED, this credential is associated with lower earning potential and generally poorer health outcomes than a standard diploma (2).
The benefits of graduating from high school do not stop with the individual; society also benefits in significant ways (3, 4). An analysis of a single U.S. graduating class estimates that if the national graduation rate were to reach 90%, then an additional 250,000 young people would complete high school, with their earnings increasing by a combined $3.1 billion annually (3). It also is estimated that each young person in the U.S. who drops out of high school costs society, over their lifetime, an estimated $272,000 more than a peer who completes high school, due to their lower tax contributions, higher risk of criminal activity, and increased reliance on welfare, Medicaid, and Medicare (4).
Community, school, and family circumstances influence the likelihood that a young person will complete high school. Students with lower family income—who tend to have access to fewer educational resources and attend lower-performing schools—are more likely to drop out of high school than their higher-income peers (4). These factors, together with lower neighborhood stability and safety, are linked to higher dropout rates for students of color when compared with white youth (5).For more information, see kidsdata.org’s Research & Links section.
Sources for this narrative:
1. Healthy People 2030. (n.d.). Social determinants of health literature summaries: High school graduation. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved from: https://health.gov/healthypeople/priority-areas/social-determinants-health/literature-summaries/high-school-graduation
2. County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. (2022). What works for health: High school equivalency credentials. University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/take-action-to-improve-health/what-works-for-health/strategies/high-school-equivalency-credentials
3. Alliance for Excellent Education. (2017). The graduation effect: Every student's potential to impact a community. Retrieved from: http://impact.all4ed.org/#imagine
4. McFarland, J., et al. (2020). Trends in high school dropout and completion rates in the United States: 2019. National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved from: https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2020117
5. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2019). The promise of adolescence: Realizing opportunity for all youth. National Academies Press. Retrieved from: https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/25388/the-promise-of-adolescence-realizing-opportunity-for-all-youth - How Children Are Faring
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The graduation rate among California high school students from the class of 2021 was 84%. Across counties with data, nine had rates above 90%, whereas five were lower than 75%. Statewide, girls (87% in 2021) are more likely to graduate high school with their class than their male peers (80% in 2021).
More than 47,000 students from California's class of 2021 did not complete high school with their cohort—almost 1 in every 10 students. The percentage of students not completing high school with their class also varies widely at the local level, with rates across school districts with 2021 data ranging from fewer than 1 in 50 students to more than 1 in 3.
Gaps in high school completion by race/ethnicity widened in 2021. Compared with 2020, graduation rates among African American/black, American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students fell in 2021, while rates for Asian, Filipino, white, and multiracial students remained level or increased. African American/black and American Indian/Alaska Native students graduated high school at rates more than 20 percentage points lower than their Asian and Filipino classmates in 2021, and were more than twice as likely to exit before completing high school when compared with white and multiracial students. - Policy Implications
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Graduating from high school is linked to positive employment, income, and health outcomes for individuals as well as to larger social and economic benefits (1, 2). Disparities in graduation rates by income and race/ethnicity persist, however, statewide and nationally, fueled primarily by differences in children's family resources, access to quality learning opportunities at school and in the community, and neighborhood stability (1, 3, 4). Although California's overall graduation rate has improved and gaps by race/ethnicity have narrowed in recent years, rates still are lowest for African American/black, American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic/Latino, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students (4). Besides youth of color and lower-income students, other populations at increased risk for not completing high school include English learners, students with disabilities, youth in foster care, and homeless students (5, 6).
Continuing to improve California's graduation rates will require schools to provide culturally responsive support to the state's increasingly diverse student body, a majority of whom are socioeconomically disadvantaged, and to adapt to students’ evolving needs—physical, mental, behavioral, and academic—particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic (3, 5, 7). When students are struggling, it is critical that they are identified early and supported to stay engaged with school (5). Education leaders and policymakers also can promote evidence-based strategies to foster student, family, school, and community strengths associated with higher graduation rates, while addressing systems and structures that give rise to inequities across groups (3, 5).
Policy and practice options that could promote high school graduation include:
- Ensuring that California's K-12 education system is adequately funded and that its Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Plan and Local Control Funding Formula are implemented effectively at the district and school levels, with a continued focus on evidence-based strategies to support those at highest risk of dropping out (8)
- Continuing to encourage and support K-12 schools in efforts to mobilize students, families, and community partners in developing comprehensive, coordinated systems to support student needs and promote a positive school climate; such systems should involve school-based strategies to identify and address physical, mental, safety, and family concerns, along with efforts to promote social-emotional skills (3)
- Supporting schools in fostering culturally responsive learning environments through trainings for teachers and staff on equity principles, implicit bias, and cultural sensitivity; also, ensuring that a school's workforce reflects the diversity of its student population (3, 6, 9)
- Improving policies and practices focused on early identification of students who are struggling, including young students in feeder schools, and providing additional support (such as community-based learning programs during summers and after school), especially during critical periods, such as the transitions into and out of middle school (3, 5, 6)
- Promoting school discipline policies that are developmentally appropriate, non-punitive, unbiased, transparent, and aim to keep students in school when possible (3, 6)
- Ensuring that students are supported in their transition from high school to postsecondary programs, and are provided with opportunities—through college, career-oriented education, vocational training, or other pathways—to connect with the 21st century job market (3, 5, 6)
- Continuing to support and improve comprehensive data systems that accurately document dropout risk factors and inform strategies for student success, including early warning indicators, data sharing, and longitudinal tracking; at the local level, disaggregating student outcome data by race/ethnicity and other characteristics, and ensuring processes are in place to act on disparities (5, 9)
For more information, see kidsdata.org’s Research & Links section or visit the Everyone Graduates Center and Institute of Education Sciences What Works Clearinghouse. Also see Policy Implications under the following topics on kidsdata.org: Disconnected Youth, School Attendance and Discipline, and College Eligibility.
Sources for this narrative:
1. Healthy People 2030. (n.d.). Social determinants of health literature summaries: High school graduation. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved from: https://health.gov/healthypeople/priority-areas/social-determinants-health/literature-summaries/high-school-graduation
2. McFarland, J., et al. (2020). Trends in high school dropout and completion rates in the United States: 2019. National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved from: https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2020117
3. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2019). The promise of adolescence: Realizing opportunity for all youth. National Academies Press. Retrieved from: https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/25388/the-promise-of-adolescence-realizing-opportunity-for-all-youth
4. As cited on kidsdata.org, High school graduates, by race/ethnicity. (2023). California Department of Education.
5. Atwell, M. N., et al. (2021). Building a GradNation: Progress and challenge in raising high school graduation rates. Civic & Everyone Graduates Center. Retrieved from: https://new.every1graduates.org/building-a-grad-nation
6. Children Now. (2022). 2022 California children's report card: A survey of kids’ well-being and roadmap for the future. Retrieved from: https://www.childrennow.org/portfolio-posts/2022-california-childrens-report-card
7. As cited on kidsdata.org, Public school enrollment, by race/ethnicity; Students eligible for free or reduced price school meals. (2023). California Department of Education.
8. California Department of Education. (2022). California ESSA consolidated state plan. Retrieved from: https://www.cde.ca.gov/re/es
9. California Association of African-American Superintendents and Administrators, & California Collaborative for Educational Excellence. (2022). Lessons learned: Resources for championing equity. Retrieved from: https://ccee-ca.org/resources/lessons-learned-resources-for-championing-equity - Research & Links
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- Websites with Related Information
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- Alliance for Excellent Education (All4Ed)
- American Youth Policy Forum
- America's Promise Alliance
- California Collaborative for Educational Excellence
- California Dropout Research Project. UC Santa Barbara, Gervitz Graduate School of Education.
- California Education GPS. Alliance for Continuous Improvement.
- EdSource
- Education Commission of the States
- Education Reform Now
- Everyone Graduates Center. Johns Hopkins University School of Education.
- Institute of Education Sciences: What Works Clearinghouse. U.S. Dept. of Education.
- Jobs for the Future
- National Dropout Prevention Center
- Stanford Center for Education Policy Analysis
- Key Reports and Research
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- 2024 California Children's Report Card. Children Now.
- Building a Grad Nation: Progress and Challenge in Raising High School Graduation Rates. (2021). Civic & Everyone Graduates Center. Atwell, M. N., et al.
- California ESSA Consolidated State Plan. (2023). California Dept. of Education.
- California's Future: Education. (2021). Public Policy Institute of California. Hill, L., et al.
- Dispelling Stereotypes of Young People Who Leave School Before Graduation. (2016). America’s Promise Alliance, Center for Promise.
- Does Raising High School Graduation Requirements Improve Student Outcomes? (2021). Public Policy Institute of California. Gao, N.
- Getting Down to Facts II. Policy Analysis for California Education.
- Health Barriers to Learning and the Education Opportunity Gap. (2015). Education Commission of the States. Basch, C. E., et al.
- Indicators and Interventions: A Practical Manual for Early Warning Systems. (2019). Everyone Graduates Center.
- Is the Rise in High School Graduation Rates Real?: High-Stakes School Accountability and Strategic Behavior. (2020). The Brown Center on Education Policy.
- Supporting California’s Children Through a Whole Child Approach: A Field Guide for Creating Integrated, School-Based Systems of Care. (2022). Breaking Barriers, California Alliance of Child and Family Services, Santa Clara County Office of Education, & WestEd.
- The Essentials of California’s Education System Upgrades. (2018). Alliance for Continuous Improvement.
- The Promise of Adolescence: Realizing Opportunity for All Youth. (2019). National Academies Press. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
- County/Regional Reports
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- 2023 California County Scorecard of Children's Well-Being. Children Now.
- Annual Report on the Conditions of Children in Orange County. Orange County Children's Partnership.
- College Prep for All: Will San Diego Students Meet Challenging New Graduation Requirements? (2016). Public Policy Institute of California. Betts, J. R., et al.
- Community Health Equity Improvement Plan for Los Angeles County. Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Health.
- Important Facts About Kern’s Children. Kern County Network for Children.
- Orange County Community Indicators Report. Orange County Business Council, et al.
- San Mateo County All Together Better. San Mateo County Health.
- Santa Clara County Children's Data Book. Santa Clara County Office of Education, et al.
- Santa Monica Youth Wellbeing Report Card. Santa Monica Cradle to Career.
- Spotlight on the Inland Empire. (2021). Measure of America. Lewis, K.
- More Data Sources For High School Graduation
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- 2024 KIDS COUNT Data Book: State Trends in Child Well-Being. Annie E. Casey Foundation.
- California School Dashboard. California Dept. of Education.
- DataQuest. California Dept. of Education.
- Education Data Partnership (Ed-Data) California Dept. of Education, et al.
- Local Control Funding Formula Reports. California Dept. of Education.
- National Center for Education Statistics: Data and Tools. U.S. Dept. of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.
- The Graduation Effect. Alliance for Excellent Education.
- Upward Mobility Data Dashboard. Urban Institute.
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