MOULTRIE — Colquitt County High School sees improvement in this year’s graduation rate after the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) released the 2022 graduation rates to the public Thursday.

The Colquitt County School District shared a press release about the local high school’s results.

“Colquitt educators’ commitment to student success helped the district graduate students at a higher rate than the state average,” the release said. “The 2022 Colquitt County School District (CCSD) federally calculated 4-year graduation rate of 87.05% for all students outpaced the state of Georgia’s average graduation rate of 84.1%.”

The state’s graduation rate has increased by 14.4 percentage points since 2012, according to a GaDOE press release Thursday.

The district subgroup data for the class of 2022 charted the highest graduation rate in three areas since 2012. The graduation rate for African American students was 88.19%, for English Language Learners was 78.79%, and for Students with Disabilities, 79.17%. The 4-year graduation for Students with Disabilities has increased by 49.87% over the past ten years.

“The increase in graduates can be attributed to the faculty and staff members who are all-in on making sure students leave with all the credits they need plus a plan for their future,” Dan Chappuis, the principal of CCHS, said. “We want each student to leave with their diploma and to be enrolled in postsecondary education, enlisted in the military, or employed.”

The GaDOE calculates the graduation rate using the federally mandated “adjusted cohort rate.”

The district’s cohort is established when students initially start as freshmen at C.A. Gray Junior High School, is adjusted for student transfers, and ultimately reflects the number of students in the district who graduated within four years.

“Teachers and students who persevered through the challenges of the last several years deserve credit for Georgia’s graduation rate increasing and other recent positive indicators, like Georgia students beating the SAT national average once again,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said in a GaDOE press release.

He added, “I commend Georgia’s educators and the class of 2022, and am confident we will continue to see improvements as we expand opportunities for students and invest in the academic recovery of our state.”

To see the full GaDOE report on graduation rates, please visit www.gadoe.org.