2019 4-Year Dropout Rate for English Learner Students Sees an Increase Statewide from 2018

Over the past five years, the number of English Learner (EL) students statewide in the graduating student cohort has increased nearly 50%.

While the number of EL students has increased, so has the 4-year dropout rate. In 2015, 14.1% of EL students who enrolled in 9th grade in 2011 dropped out within fours years; by 2019, the 4-year dropout rate had increased to 16.9%. 

Alternatively, the 4-year graduation rate for EL students in 2019 was 64.6% compared to 64% in 2015.

The state's 26 Gateway Cities represented 46.8% of the 2019 EL cohort. The 4-year dropout among these communities ranged from 0% in Westfield to 40% in Peabody.

Source: www.doe.mass.edu

Lynn 2017 Annual Dropout Rates

During the 2016 - 2017 academic year, 1.8% of Massachusetts students statewide dropped out of school at some point during the year. Dropping out is defined by DESE standards is having left school and not being re-enrolled by October of the following school year. In Lynn, the percentage of LPS students who dropped out during the last school year was higher at 5.1%, an increase over the 2015 - 2016 school year.

Dropout rates at each of the high schools varied: Lynn English (5.7%), Lynn Classical (5.3%), Lynn Tech (1.3%), and Fecteau-Leary (12.5%).

These percentages are equivalent to the total numbers referenced below:

At the grade level, the percentage of students who dropped out varied with the highest proportion being at the 10th grade level in 2016 - 2017 and the lowest being at the 12th grade level.

When looking at the individual subgroups, one-fifth of Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students in the10th grade level during the 2016 - 2017 academic year dropped out. Students with disabilities reported the highest dropout rates for students in that subgroup at the 9th and 12th grade levels (approximately 10% for each of those grades).

There is also a disparity in Lynn between male and female students in terms of dropout rates with the majority of students who drop out being male.

At the district level, Phoenix Academy Public Charter School - Springfield reported the highest annual drop out rate at 54.4%. Lynn and Springfield both reported the 17th highest annual dropout rates in the state at 5.1% in 2016 - 2017.

For more information: www.doe.mass.edu