Manatee achieves record for high school graduations in pandemic school year

Manatee County high schools achieved a record-breaking graduation rate in the previous school year, as the COVID-19 pandemic was emerging.

The school district had a graduation rate of 85.8 percent in the 2019-2020 school year, Manatee’s highest rate since 2010-2011, when Florida switched to a new formula.

Manatee’s previous high was 85.4 percent in 2017-2018, just below the latest number, according to state data.

Schools throughout Florida enjoyed similar gains after Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran softened the requirements. As the COVID-19 pandemic was emerging and students were forced online, Florida stopped standardized exams for one school year — removing a barrier to graduation.

About 7.1 percent of Florida students in the 2019-20 graduating class finished high school under that exemption, according to a new DOE report.

Jacob Oliva, the DOE’s chancellor for K-12 education, said numbers from the 2019-2020 school year were muddied by the pandemic. He addressed Florida superintendents in a memo on Thursday, according to the News Service of Florida.

“Though graduation rates are up, I want to be very clear this increase must be understood within the context of the exemptions that were provided in the spring semester to the class of 2020,” Oliva wrote.

“That compassion and grace for our seniors was absolutely necessary, as we took several steps to ensure that our seniors would have support and opportunities to minimize the disruption of the pandemic on their educational journey,” he continued. “However, it limits the interpretation of these results.”

The state, with an overall graduation rate of 90 percent, achieved an all-time high. The same was true in Manatee County, which topped past years:

• 2010-2011: 64.7 percent.
• 2011-12: 76.2 percent.
• 2012-13: 76.8 percent.
• 2013-14: 75.7 percent.
• 2014-15: 77.9 percent.
• 2015-16: 83.5 percent.
• 2016-17: 81.1 percent.
• 2017-18: 85.4 percent.
• 2018-19: 83.2 percent.
• 2019-20: 85.8 percent.

High school seniors in Manatee County and throughout Florida will need full support as they work toward graduation in the 2020-2021 school year. Unlike last year, state exams are still planned for the coming months.

“We see this data as a reminder of all of your hard work over the past year to guide our students in the wake of unprecedented challenges,” Oliva said in his message to superintendents.

This story was originally published January 11, 2021 at 3:51 PM.