Graduation rates don't tell the whole story

Two schools also factor in stats about on-time high school graduation rates in Moses Lake School District

MOSES LAKE — The Associated Press on Thursday reported that Moses Lake has one of the worst on-time high school graduation rates for the class of 2004 among Washington state school districts. According to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, only 53 percent of students in the district graduated on time last year.

But there's more to those statistics than meets the eye, according to Moses Lake School District Superintendent Steve Chestnut.

"It's because of our Job Corps program," said Chestnut. He explained that in February 2003, a program taught by Columbia Basin Secondary School teacher Ella West began offering students at Columbia Basin Job Corps the opportunity to earn their high school diplomas through her on-site instruction.

Through its year-round program, 48 Job Corps students pursued their school diplomas in 2003-2004 and 60 did so in 2004-2004. Since the program started, the Moses Lake School District has graduated 125 Job Corps students.

"In my mind, it's a success story, but it's making our statistics look bad," said Chestnut.

The year prior, the on-time graduation rate for the class of 2003 was 57.6 percent district-wide.

At Moses Lake High School, the numbers are higher, but still, said Chestnut, not satisfactory.

The on-time high school graduation rate for the class of 2004 at MLHS was 66 percent, again down from 67.8 percent the previous year.

"I want to be clear," Chestnut said. "We're not satisfied with the 66 percent at Moses Lake High School."

MLHS principal Dave Balcom said the school is currently undergoing a self-study as required every seven years for accreditation by the state. After receiving input from both students, parents and a group of educators and administrators organized by the North Central Educational Service District of Wenatchee, the school will submit its findings to the State Board of Education by the end of this school year. Looking at the on-time graduation rate will be part of this year's study.

"We can't accept 66 percent," Balcom said. "By 2014, that number has to be 100 percent."

He explained that the goal is part of the No Child Left Behind Act, which started in 2002. "It's a great theory," he said, but added that he feels with the funding sources, or lack thereof, that are available, the mechanics of reaching such a goal are unattainable.

Improving the on-time graduation rate of students at Job Corps and CBSS comes with far greater challenges.

"We get kids from all over," West said of her students at Job Corps. Some come from as far away as Africa, though the majority hail from the Interstate 5 corridor area, as well as Idaho and Oregon. Some students, she described, have been on their own for a long time, others have been homeless or spent time in jail. Job Corps accepts students between 16 and 24 years old. "We're a last resort for many of them," West said.

The choice to complete a high school diploma instead of a GED (General Educational Development) may open a few more doors for such students, West said.

"It's a changing world, and the more qualified you can be to exist in it, the better off you are," she said. Some employers will be more inclined to interview a candidate with a diploma rather than a GED, and areas of the military have begun to require high school diplomas, West said. She compared the difference between a diploma and a GED to that between a bachelor's and a master's degree.

Students at CBSS, too, come from more non-traditional backgrounds than students at the high school.

"The students that are in CBSS, they're in that system because four years didn't work for them," Balcom said.

"Some kids need more time, and that is a reality that I don't think federal law has recognized," Chestnut said.

The current tracking system does not exclude special programs like Job Corps or CBSS, but counts all students served by the district and their progress over four consecutive years of high school. Starting with the class of 2006, however, on-time graduation figures will count those students who are able to earn a high school diploma in five years.

Another challenge for non-traditional students is just around the corner, however, as all students will be required to pass the Washington State Assessment of Student Learning test starting in 2008.