Cohort Graduation Rate

1. Cohort Graduation Rate October 1, 2010 Jonathan Wiens, Assessment and Accountability Greg Houser, Student Learning and Partnerships Oregon Department of Education

2. What is a Cohort? • A cohort is a set of students who first enter high school (grades 9 to 12) during a particular school year. This is recorded as their “high school entry year.” • The cohort begins with the entering 9th grade class in a school or district. • Cohorts are continually adjusted by adding students who transfer in and removing students who transfer out. • Dropouts are not removed from a cohort.

3. What is a Cohort Graduation Rate? • The four-year cohort graduation rate is the percent of students in a particular cohort who graduate with a regular high school diploma within four years of 9th grade. • The five-year cohort graduation rate is the percent of students in a particular cohort who graduate with a regular high school diploma within five years of entering 9th grade.

4. What is the cohort graduation rate formula? Cohort Graduation Rates are calculated as: Four-Year Rate: Number of students in the adjusted cohort who received regular diplomas by the summer of their 4th year ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Number of students in the adjusted cohort Five Year Rate: Number of students in the adjusted cohort who received regular diplomas by the summer of their 5th year ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Number of students in the adjusted cohort

5. What cohort graduation rates has ODE produced? • 2005-06 Cohort • Four-year rate released in May 2010 • Five-year rate released in April 2011 • 2006-07 Cohort • Four-year rate released in April 2011 • Five-year rate to be released March 2012 • 2007-08 Cohort • Four-year rate to be released March 2012

6. How do cohort gradution rates compare to previously rates? • Oregon’s previous rate was the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) graduation rate, based on a single year of dropout and graduation data: • It did not take into account other student outcomes. • For example, modified diplomas were not included anywhere in the rate. Cohort rates include modified diplomas as non-graduates.

7. How is graduation included in Accountability?

8. State Four-Year Cohort Rates

9. Cohort Graduation Rate Policy

10. Federal Policy • The U.S. Department of Education has required that states develop cohort graduation rates by the 2010-11 school year. • Cohort rates must be included on 2010-11 school report cards. • Disaggregated cohort rates must be used in 2011-12 AYP determinations. • Federal regulations and guidance are detailed and prescriptive. Oregon has followed these regulations in developing our cohort graduation rate calculations.

11. How is a cohort rate produced? Determine students who first entered high school in a given school year. Determine each student’s final outcome. Determine each students subgroup status. Assign the students to their last resident district and high school. Remove students who transferred out. Among those that remain, calculate the percent who graduated with a regular diploma in the time allowed.

12. High School Entry Year Rules High School Entry Year is determined by the first year the student was enrolled in a high school grade (9-12) anywhere. • For most students this is their 9th grade school year. • Entry Year does not change if a student repeats or skips a grade in high school. • Entry Year does not change when a student transfers between schools or districts. • Students who transfer from out of state have their Entry Year based on their first year in high school in the other state or country.

13. High School Entry Year in SSID High School Entry year is recorded in the SSID collect. Districts are required to submit a High School Entry Year the first time a student’s SSID is updated to include a high school grade (9-12). The entry year field is locked immediately. Changes can be made only through an appeal to ODE.

14. What are the possible student outcomes? All students are assigned an outcome: • Graduate: regular high school diploma. • Exempt: Transfer, move to home schooling, emigrate, or are deceased. • Other Completers: Received an Adult High School Diploma, Modified Diploma, Extended Diploma, GED, or Alternative Certificate. • Continuing enrollment in the following year. • Completed four/five years without a credential and did not return. • Withdrew from school prior to the end of the four/five-year window.

15. How is subgroup membership determined? • Race/Ethnicity/Gender • Based on student outcome record (or last enrollment record). • Students with disabilities, economically disadvantaged, limited English proficient, migrant, TAG • Based on whether the student was classified in these subgroups at any time during high school

16. Which students are included in the Students with Disabilities Subgroup? Definition All students served by special education programs during any school year in which the student was enrolled in a high school grade. Steps to identify the subgroup A list of SSIDs is created, of students considered Students with Disabilities, from the Special Education Data Collections Students included in the Cohort, who are also on the Students with Disabilities list, are counted in the Students with Disabilities subgroup.

17. Students with Disabilities Subgroup -- Data Collections Special Education Child Count • All school-age students reported as eligible and receiving services. Cohort uses the SECC collections applicable to the years the student was enrolled in high school. Special Education June Exit • All school-age students reported as exiting special education services. Cohort uses the collections applicable to the years the student was enrolled in high school. Special Education Child Find • This collection was not used in the cohort calculations.

18. How are students assigned to districts and schools? District: Students are assigned to the last district they were resident at during the cohort period. JDEPs are not eligible to be an accountable district. School: Students are assigned to the last high school they were resident at in their last resident district. Students who never resident at a high school (i.e., only were resident at programs) are assigned only to the district.

19. When is a student removed from a cohort? We remove students from an institution’s cohort if they: • Transfer to another public high school in Oregon; • Transfer to a private school; • Leave for home schooling; • Transfer to a high school in another state; • Emigrate; or • Are deceased.

20. When is a student not removed from a cohort? The following situations do NOT transfer a student out of an institution’s cohort. • A student drops out of school; • A student transfers to an alternative program within the district; • A student transfers to a JDEP

21. Who is a “graduate” in a cohort rate? • The cohort rate counts only regular high school diplomas as graduates. • The cohort rate counts as non-graduates modified diplomas, extended diplomas, adult high school diplomas, and GEDs. • Note: these students are not dropouts. • Federal guidance specifically forbids “cohort reassignment” based on IEP or LEP status.

22. What about students who graduate early or late? • Early graduates in a cohort are “banked” and reported with their cohort. • The four-year graduation rate for the 2006-07 cohort includes all students who graduated by the end of their fourth year. • Students who graduate after the end of the time period are counted as non-completers • Example: A student who graduates in her fifth year would be a non-graduate in the four-year cohort rate, but a graduate in a five-year rate.

23. AYP for 2010-11 Schools meet AYP graduation if: • The All Students subgroup meets the target of 65% for the four-year rate; • The All Students subgroup meets the target or 70% for the five-year rate; OR • The All Students subgroup shows improvement in its four year rate. Beginning with 2011-12 all subgroups will also need to meet on graduation.

24. Report Card for 2010-11 High Schools rated on graduation receive a graduation rating of: • Outstanding: the All Students four-year rate is at least 69% or the five-year rate is at least 74% • Satisfactory: The school received a “Met” on AYP graduation. • In Need of Improvement: the school received a “Not Met” on AYP graduation.

25. Information Cohort Graduation Rate web page: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=2644 For more information on the Cohort Graduation Rate, contacts are: Jon Wiens email: jon.wiens@state.or.us phone: 503 947-5764 Cynthia Yee email: cynthia.yee@state.or.us phone: 503-947-5928