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State High School Graduation Rates By Race, Ethnicity

Review state graduation rates for public high schools, broken down by race and ethnicity.

U.S. public high schools recorded a four-year graduation rate of 80 percent for the 2011-12 school year, an all-time high.

Graduation rates vary greatly by state and race. Nationwide, black students graduated at a rate of 69 percent; Hispanics graduated at 73 percent; whites graduated at a rate of 86 percent.

The following table lists 2011-2012 four-year adjusted cohort state graduation rates for public high schools by student race and ethnicity. Please note that state graduation rate data was not reported for Idaho, Kentucky and Oklahoma.


StateTotalWhiteHispanicBlackAsian / Pacific Islander
Alabama7581696785
Alaska7076706176
Arizona7684707184
Arkansas8487787884
California7886736690
Colorado7582626682
Connecticut8591697392
Delaware8083747493
District of Columbia5986545874
Florida7580736489
Georgia7078606282
Hawaii8279767684
Illinois8289766893
Indiana8689807389
Iowa8991777489
Kansas8588777586
Louisiana7278706585
Maine8586807289
Maryland8490737793
Massachusetts8590667389
Michigan7682646087
Minnesota7884535174
Mississippi7582796990
Missouri8689807390
Montana8487797992
Nebraska8891787483
Nevada6372544874
New Hampshire8687747686
New Jersey8693777595
New Mexico7077686984
New York7787636386
North Carolina8085737587
North Dakota8790737686
Ohio8186686190
Oregon6871605379
Pennsylvania8489686889
Rhode Island7782676779
South Carolina7578697185
South Dakota8389676784
Tennessee8791807991
Texas8893848494
Utah8083666478
Vermont8888867294
Virginia8388737590
Washington7780676782
West Virginia7980797494
Wisconsin8892746489
Wyoming7982676686

Source: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data
Review 2010-2011 graduation rates here.
Mike Maciag is Data Editor for GOVERNING.