GRPS graduation rate for the class of 2024 reaches 82.53%, highest in a decade, district reports

Grand Rapids Public Schools reported an 82.53% four-year graduation rate for the class of 2024 during the March 3 board meeting, the district’s highest rate in the past decade and nearly level with the state average.

“So if you look at the slide that's displayed here, you'll see that our graduation rate was 82.53 which is an increase from the previous year. It's our highest graduation rate that we've had within the last 10 years,” Rodney Lewis told the board during the superintendent's report. He added the state average for 2024 was 82.83%, putting the district 0.3 percentage points below the statewide level.

Lewis said the district has reduced its gap with the state since 2015 and that subgroup data and school-level breakout would be explored in more detail at a forthcoming work session. “We always receive our graduation, our official graduation levels, about 9 months after graduation,” Superintendent Roby said earlier in the presentation to explain the reporting timeline.

The district also reported a dropout rate of 10.37% for the cohort and noted cohort sizes grew in 2024, producing the highest number of graduates compared with the prior four years. Lewis told trustees that females outpaced males in graduation rates and displayed charts by subgroup and by school in the presentation.

Board members thanked staff for the progress and asked for a clarification about the cohort definition. Lewis explained the cohort counts students from ninth grade through completion of twelfth grade for that graduating class.

The district said it will bring more detailed analysis of subgroup performance and cohort trends to an upcoming work session for board review.