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Michigan four-year high school graduation rates down, mirror national trend

Masked students from Edna Karr High School in New Orleans stand at their graduation ceremony. The school split the graduating class in half to allow for social distancing, then held identical indoor ceremonies back to back.
Aubri Juhasz
/
WWNO
Masked students from Edna Karr High School in New Orleans stand at their graduation ceremony. The school split the graduating class in half to allow for social distancing, then held identical indoor ceremonies back to back.

For the first time since 2016, Michigan's four-year high school graduation dropped last year. That's according to the latest state data.

The data shows most of the off-track students from the expected class of 2021 were still enrolled in school, earning they’re taking more time to graduate.

Wendy Zdeb is executive director of the Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals. She says that trend may continue.

“And I think we need to make allowances for that and not necessarily look at that as a punishing factor for schools who may not be graduating students in in four years, if it’s their choice. You know? And may be for a good reason that that works better for them.”

Education leaders are blaming the pandemic for the decline in four-year graduation rates. Five and six-year rates were still up.