Polk County Graduation Rates Climb: "Not First, But Hey, Not Last Either!

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Good news, Polk County! The high school graduation rate has risen by nearly four percentage points, reaching a solid 82.2% for the 2023-24 school year. That’s progress, folks! Sure, we’re still in the state’s bottom 10, but let’s focus on the positives. After all, even turtles make progress when they stick their necks out.

A Journey from Pandemic Purgatory

Let’s not forget where we came from. Back in the pre-pandemic golden days of 2019-20, Polk’s graduation rate was a respectable 86.5%. Then COVID hit, and suddenly, Zoom class attendance became a myth, and Wi-Fi outages were a student’s best friend. The rate plummeted to 78.3% in 2021-22, leaving Polk County scrambling to recover.

Now, with this year’s 82.2%, we’re on the upswing! Superintendent Frederick Heid is optimistic, crediting “the hard work of our students and staff.” He added, “PCPS is closing the gap with Florida’s statewide graduation rate and improving at a faster pace.” Translation: We’re not there yet, but we’re running faster than the last-place kid in the sack race.

The Statewide Snapshot

Florida’s average graduation rate is sitting pretty at 89.7%, with some districts achieving a staggering 100%. Lafayette County, with a total of 80 graduates, hit perfection, as did some lab schools affiliated with universities. Sure, they’re small enough to count graduates by hand, but hey, perfection is perfection!

Polk, meanwhile, tied for eighth-lowest in the state with Union County. Not ideal, but look on the bright side—we’re not Franklin County, which posted a 72.5% graduation rate. That’s like being the kid who doesn’t study but still gets a D instead of an F.

Strategies for Success?

Polk County attributes its improvement to new strategies, dedicated teachers, and hard-working students. But let’s not underestimate the power of good ol’ fashioned peer pressure: “Graduate, or everyone’s blaming you for the stats!”

Also, let’s take a moment to acknowledge the resilience of students who survived virtual learning chaos, in-person class disruptions, and whatever 2020 threw at them (we’re still not over the sourdough bread phase....Sourdough bread became more popular during the COVID-19 pandemic because it could be made at home, while baker's yeast was in short supply)

Room for Improvement

Of course, there’s still work to be done. At 82.2%, Polk is like the kid who passed the class but didn’t make the honor roll. Encouragingly, the district is improving at a faster pace than the state average. With a little more effort, who knows? Polk might someday crack the top 50—or at least outpace the cows in Okeechobee.

Final Bell

So, let’s celebrate progress while acknowledging the challenge ahead. Sure, Polk County isn’t leading the pack, but it’s not trailing, either. For now, we’ll call it what it is: a solid B-minus performance in a state full of A’s and F’s.

Because in Polk County, we don’t need perfection—we just need to keep moving up the ladder, one diploma at a time. And hey, at least we’re not Franklin County.

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