TOWSON, MD—Baltimore County Public Schools officials have announced that that the graduation rate for the Class of 2023 has risen to 84.9%, up from 84.5% in 2022, according to data recently released by the Maryland State Department of Education.

This is an improvement of nearly half of a percentage points and is in line with the state’s overall graduation rate of 85.8%, which is down from 86.3% in 2022.

“We are encouraged by the recent trends in our graduation rates and believe that the targeted strategies and supports we put in place in partnership with high school leaders over the last few years are making a difference,” BCPS Superintendent Dr. Myriam Rogers said in a statement. “We are proud of the accomplishments of the Class of 2023 and are intensifying our efforts to ensure that we meet the needs of all students and prepare them to graduate and successfully pursue careers and higher education.”

The graduation rate has improved for all student groups, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those receiving special education services.

The highest graduation rate was recorded at Eastern Technical High School, where it rose to 100%, followed by George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology at 99.1%, Hereford High School at 98.8%, Western School of Technology at 97.7%, and Towson High School at 96.1%.

The dropout rate for students receiving special education services decreased by 0.6 percentage points to 72%, the school system said.

The BCPS data release also shows that Randallstown High School saw its graduation rate increase for the second year in a row, rising by 6.1 percentage points to 94.2%. Owings Mills High School also saw an improvement in its graduation rate to 72.8%, up 4.6 percentage points from 2022.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.