The News: Georgia’s graduation rate has hit an all time high at 82%. This is up slightly from last year’s graduation rate of 81.6%.
The Numbers: Georgia’s graduation rate has increased by 12 percentage points since 2012, with steady increases each year.
In 2019, 71 Georgia school districts recorded graduation rates at or above 90% and 24 districts recorded rates at or above 95%.
Here are the graduation rates per year since 2012:
2019 – 82.0 percent
2018 – 81.6 percent
2017 – 80.6 percent
2016 – 79.4 percent
2015 – 79.0 percent
2014 – 72.6 percent
2013 – 71.8 percent
2012 – 69.7 percent
How are the rates calculated?: According to the Georgia Department of Education, graduation rates are calculated as follows:
Georgia calculates a four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate as required by federal law. This rate is the number of students who graduate in four years with a regular high school diploma divided by the number of students who form the adjusted cohort for the graduating class. From the beginning of ninth grade, students who are entering that grade for the first time form a cohort that is subsequently “adjusted” by adding any students who transfer into the cohort during the next three years, and subtracting any students who transfer out.
The Quote: “I’m proud today of Georgia’s teachers and students, who are doing the on-the-ground work that leads to increases in our graduation rate and other indicators – including NAEP and Georgia Milestones scores,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “Moving forward, we must continue to focus on offering a relevant education and preparing every child for their future – not a one-size-fits-all system that sends every student in the same direction, but a tailored and personalized pathway based on a student’s academic and career interests and future goals.”
Your School System: Here is how your local school system compared to the state average.
| School System | Graduation Rate | Comparison |
| State Average | 82.0 | |
| Appling County | 90.2 | Above State Average |
| Atkinson County | 89.7 | Above State Average |
| Bacon County | 94.1 | Above State Average |
| Baker County | 87.0 | Above State Average |
| Baldwin County | 90.7 | Above State Average |
| Banks County | 85.3 | Above State Average |
| Barrow County | 87.6 | Above State Average |
| Bartow County | 89.2 | Above State Average |
| Ben Hill County | 88.5 | Above State Average |
| Berrien County | 86.6 | Above State Average |
| Bibb County | 79.4 | Below State Average |
| Bleckley County | 92.9 | Above State Average |
| Brantley County | 85.5 | Above State Average |
| Brooks County | 91.0 | Above State Average |
| Bryan County | 89.1 | Above State Average |
| Bulloch County | 79.9 | Below State Average |
| Burke County | 91.6 | Above State Average |
| Butts County | 83.5 | Above State Average |
| Calhoun County | 88.5 | Above State Average |
| Camden County | 95.5 | Above State Average |
| Candler County | 93.6 | Above State Average |
| Carroll County | 93.3 | Above State Average |
| Catoosa County | 87.4 | Above State Average |
| Charlton County | 90.8 | Above State Average |
| Savannah-Chatham County | 87.8 | Above State Average |
| Chattahoochee County | 76.7 | Above State Average |
| Chattooga County | 87.3 | Above State Average |
| Cherokee County | 86.9 | Above State Average |
| Clarke County | 81.4 | Below State Average |
| Clayton County | 72.7 | Below State Average |
| Clinch County | 88.8 | Above State Average |
| Cobb County | 87.0 | Above State Average |
| Coffee County | 84.2 | Above State Average |
| Colquitt County | 85.4 | Above State Average |
| Columbia County | 92.0 | Above State Average |
| Cook County | 88.4 | Above State Average |
| Coweta County | 86.9 | Above State Average |
| Crawford County | 67.7 | Below State Average |
| Crisp County | 87.7 | Above State Average |
| Dade County | 80.7 | Below State Average |
| Dawson County | 95.8 | Above State Average |
| Decatur County | 85.0 | Above State Average |
| DeKalb County | 73.4 | Below State Average |
| Dodge County | 90.5 | Above State Average |
| Dooly County | 83.3 | Above State Average |
| Dougherty County | 85.1 | Above State Average |
| Douglas County | 87.4 | Above State Average |
| Early County | 84.9 | Above State Average |
| Echols County | 100.0 | Above State Average |
| Effingham County | 90.5 | Above State Average |
| Elbert County | 89.5 | Above State Average |
| Emanuel County | 83.5 | Above State Average |
| Evans County | 82.8 | Above State Average |
| Fannin County | 93.9 | Above State Average |
| Fayette County | 90.2 | Above State Average |
| Floyd County | 93.3 | Above State Average |
| Forsyth County | 94.6 | Above State Average |
| Franklin County | 90.7 | Above State Average |
| Fulton County | 87.2 | Above State Average |
| Gilmer County | 92.4 | Above State Average |
| Glascock County | 91.7 | Above State Average |
| Glynn County | 92.8 | Above State Average |
| Gordon County | 92.3 | Above State Average |
| Grady County | 88.8 | Above State Average |
| Greene County | 83.9 | Above State Average |
| Gwinnett County | 80.9 | Below State Average |
| Habersham County | 91.6 | Above State Average |
| Hall County | 87.4 | Above State Average |
| Hancock County | 80.0 | Below State Average |
| Haralson County | 97.2 | Above State Average |
| Harris County | 93.3 | Above State Average |
| Hart County | 94.9 | Above State Average |
| Heard County | 83.3 | Above State Average |
| Henry County | 87.0 | Above State Average |
| Houston County | 87.9 | Above State Average |
| Irwin County | 95.2 | Above State Average |
| Jackson County | 95.8 | Above State Average |
| Jasper County | 84.2 | Above State Average |
| Jeff Davis County | 89.1 | Above State Average |
| Jefferson County | 86.7 | Above State Average |
| Jenkins County | 78.9 | Below State Average |
| Johnson County | 88.2 | Above State Average |
| Jones County | 82.4 | Above State Average |
| Lamar County | 83.3 | Above State Average |
| Lanier County | 84.2 | Above State Average |
| Laurens County | 86.7 | Above State Average |
| Lee County | 90.0 | Above State Average |
| Liberty County | 88.0 | Above State Average |
| Lincoln County | 84.8 | Above State Average |
| Long County | 87.1 | Above State Average |
| Lowndes County | 91.7 | Above State Average |
| Lumpkin County | 95.5 | Above State Average |
| Macon County | 84.8 | Above State Average |
| Madison County | 94.6 | Above State Average |
| Marion County | 85.0 | Above State Average |
| McDuffie County | 82.2 | Above State Average |
| McIntosh County | 76.3 | Below State Average |
| Meriwether County | 82.3 | Above State Average |
| Miller County | 82.9 | Above State Average |
| Mitchell County | 93.9 | Above State Average |
| Monroe County | 86.1 | Above State Average |
| Montgomery County | 80.5 | Below State Average |
| Morgan County | 91.2 | Above State Average |
| Murray County | 95.0 | Above State Average |
| Muscogee County | 86.1 | Above State Average |
| Newton County | 86.9 | Above State Average |
| Oconee County | 97.7 | Above State Average |
| Oglethorpe County | 94.8 | Above State Average |
| Paulding County | 88.8 | Above State Average |
| Peach County | 84.4 | Above State Average |
| Pickens County | 93.0 | Above State Average |
| Pierce County | 86.3 | Above State Average |
| Pike County | 93.9 | Above State Average |
| Polk County | 82.1 | Above State Average |
| Pulaski County | 87.6 | Above State Average |
| Putnam County | 92.3 | Above State Average |
| Quitman County | 82.8 | Above State Average |
| Rabun County | 91.5 | Above State Average |
| Randolph County | 84.1 | Above State Average |
| Richmond County | 75.1 | Below State Average |
| Rockdale County | 82.7 | Above State Average |
| Schley County | 90.4 | Above State Average |
| Screven County | 84.3 | Above State Average |
| Seminole County | 86.5 | Above State Average |
| Griffin-Spalding County | 88.6 | Above State Average |
| Stephens County | 91.4 | Above State Average |
| Stewart County | 96.9 | Above State Average |
| Sumter County | 86.0 | Above State Average |
| Talbot County | 82.9 | Above State Average |
| Taliaferro County | Too Few Students | N/A |
| Tattnall County | 88.7 | Above State Average |
| Taylor County | 76.9 | Below State Average |
| Telfair County | 85.7 | Above State Average |
| Terrell County | 85.6 | Above State Average |
| Thomas County | 89.3 | Above State Average |
| Tift County | 81.2 | Below State Average |
| Toombs County | 90.1 | Above State Average |
| Towns County | 97.6 | Above State Average |
| Treutlen County | 81.7 | Below State Average |
| Troup County | 86.6 | Above State Average |
| Turner County | 89.3 | Above State Average |
| Twiggs County | 89.8 | Above State Average |
| Union County | 99.5 | Above State Average |
| Thomaston-Upson County | 90.9 | Above State Average |
| Walker County | 88.3 | Above State Average |
| Walton County | 89.9 | Above State Average |
| Ware County | 86.0 | Above State Average |
| Warren County | 85.7 | Above State Average |
| Washington County | 89.7 | Above State Average |
| Wayne County | 93.8 | Above State Average |
| Webster County | 100.0 | Above State Average |
| Wheeler County | 89.5 | Above State Average |
| White County | 91.4 | Above State Average |
| Whitfield County | 86.8 | Above State Average |
| Wilcox County | 90.3 | Above State Average |
| Wilkes County | 87.7 | Above State Average |
| Wilkinson County | 95.3 | Above State Average |
| Worth County | 74.4 | Below State Average |
| Atlanta Public Schools | 78.0 | Below State Average |
| Bremen City | 98.5 | Above State Average |
| Buford City | 92.6 | Above State Average |
| Calhoun City | 98.1 | Above State Average |
| Carrollton City | 91.0 | Above State Average |
| Cartersville City | 90.4 | Above State Average |
| Chickamauga City | 98.1 | Above State Average |
| Commerce City | 95.8 | Above State Average |
| Dalton Public Schools | 81.6 | Below State Average |
| City Schools of Decatur | 95.2 | Above State Average |
| Dublin City | 88.8 | Above State Average |
| Gainesville City | 80.3 | Below State Average |
| Jefferson City | 95.9 | Above State Average |
| Marietta City | 75.7 | Below State Average |
| Pelham City | 82.4 | Above State Average |
| Rome City | 93.3 | Above State Average |
| Social Circle City | 92.3 | Above State Average |
| Thomasville City | 74.2 | Below State Average |
| Trion City | 97.2 | Above State Average |
| Valdosta City | 86.9 | Above State Average |
| Vidalia City | 96.3 | Above State Average |
Thom Chandler
Thom Chandler is the editor of The Georgia Sun and has been writing, editing and managing websites and blogs since 1995. He is a lifelong Georgian and one of those increasingly rare Atlanta natives.
