Total Graduates and Graduation rate by Race/Ethnicity and Sex, by School District.

High school graduation is the culmination of a successful K-12 education and the gateway to college or employment. Students who do not graduate face the prospect of unemployment or low-paying jobs.

School District

In 2019, Erie County's high school graduate classes were largest in the Erie City (575) and Millcreek (532) school districts. Both the highest and lowest graduation rates were found in the Erie City school district, with Erie HS (68.3%, down from 71.4%) and Collegiate Academy of PA (100%, up from 99%). Outside of the Erie City limits, the Corry Area school district also was lowest with only an 87.1% graduation rate, but up from 84.5% in 2018. The average cohort graduation rate in Erie County was 90.8%, down from 91.8% in 2018, with a total of 2,390 graduating students.

Race

While an average of 91.1% of White high school students graduated in 2019, students of color averaged 92.5% graduation rates. However, Hispanic students achieve the lowest graduation rates, with 85.1% in 2019, down from 89.1% in 2018.

Gender

Overall, Female students achieved higher graduation rates (92.7%) than their Male counterparts (89.2%), but both were down from the previous year (93.6% and 90.8%, respectively). This trend is reversed in the Fairview, Fort LeBoeuf, and North East school districts, where Male students average higher completion rates. Graduation rates are not disaggregated by race and gender, unfortunately.

EVS analyzes the data in each topic category using indicators, which report a targeted and digestible number, rate, or amount to represent Erie County as a whole. While this does not cover every aspect of the topic, it assists in establishing Erie's performance relative to the prior year(s). The indicators for the Education: High School topic are:

This indicator measures the percentage of Erie County public school high schoolers who achieved graduation in latest data year. The trend for High School Cohort Graduation is down and worse from 2018 to 2019, with a reported decrease  of -1.4% within the County.

Data from the PA Department of Education as of 09/2024.