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Hillsboro reports district-high graduation gains for 2024, narrows Hispanic-white gap
Summary
District officials presented 2024 graduation and on-track data showing overall gains, improvement among Hispanic/Latino students, and targeted declines among some groups; staff cited continuing COVID-era cohort effects, summer-school work and interventions as drivers.
Hillsboro School District staff told the board on Tuesday that the district's four-year graduation rate for the class of 2024 increased and that key subgroup gaps have narrowed, while also noting ongoing challenges for some student groups.
Andrea, the district executive leading the presentation, said the district's overall four-year graduation rate reached 87.55 percent for 2024, one of the district's highest rates since the Oregon Department of Education began cohort calculations. Officials noted a district goal of 88.8 percent and reported year-over-year gains that they said show progress toward that target.
David and other staff presented subgroup breakdowns: the graduation rate for Hispanic/Latino students rose from 84.16 percent in 2023 to 86.24 percent in 2024, narrowing the gap with white students; staff characterized that closing of the gap as a notable accomplishment. The presentation also showed declines in graduation rates for students who identify as Black/African American and for some students with disabilities and American Indian/Alaska Native students, which staff said require targeted work.
Staff emphasized the lingering effects of the COVID-era disruptions on cohorts who experienced distance learning in elementary and middle grades, calling those experiences "formative" and explaining that cohort history drives some of the graduation and on-track patterns. A student representative in the meeting described that experience firsthand and said the pandemic closures were a formative memory for many students.
District staff described interventions that contributed to gains: expanded summer school and credit-recovery options, career-technical education partnerships, on-site reengagement (Oak Street campus, diploma-plus offerings), focused ninth- and tenth-grade on-track efforts, and community partnerships such as migrant and dual-language programming. Officials also noted targeted grants such as the Black Student Success Grant used to support Black-identified students.
The board heard that some focal groups improved (for example, former English learners and migrants) while others declined slightly. Staff said some subgroup numbers are small enough that single students can create sizable percentage swings; for instance, data suppression thresholds apply when subgroup counts are fewer than 10.
Staff pledged continued work: convening tribal leaders to advise on American Indian/Alaska Native student supports, refining on-track metric calculations, sustaining summer-school and intervention offerings and tracking reengagement of non-graduates in five-year completer data. Officials said they will return with more progress reporting and recommended interventions in future board updates.
Ending: Board members praised the work and asked staff to continue the intervention strategies, tribal engagement and reporting cadence so the board can evaluate progress.
