APS touts 70 percent graduation rate

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The Albuquerque Public Schools district claims it met its goal of a 70 percent graduation rate last year, but those are not official state numbers since the state has changed its calculation formula.

APS says its 70 percent number does not include its charter schools, which are included in the state report.

If the charter schools were included, the APS rate would actually be about 65 percent. That is still a slight increase from the year before.

APS spokesperson Monica Armenta says while the district is supportive of its 13 charter high schools, it has no academic oversight so it cannot control whether those students improve or not.

In the district, the biggest graduation gains were among African Americans, Asians and English Language Learners—each up by almost 7 percentage points.

The very first graduating class at Atrisco Heritage Academy had an almost 77-percent success rate.

"Those are the kinds of things you can't help but feel like jumping up for joy and throwing a party for—not because we are where we need to be, but because we are on the right path and we've got to hold that momentum,” Armenta says.

Armenta attributes the improvement to changes like extended high school days for some students, more online classes and a diligent system to track students in danger of not graduating.

APS is aiming for a 75 percent graduation rate over the next three years not including its charter schools.