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Community colleges popular with Pasco high-schoolers

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By RONNIE BLAIR

THE TAMPA TRIBUNE

Published: October 21, 2009

LAND O' LAKES - Community college continues to be the most popular next step for high school graduates in Pasco County, according to an annual report distributed to school board members last week.

Of the 2,898 members of the class of 2008 who responded to a survey, 47 percent said they planned to attend community college, while 29 percent were headed to a four-year college or university in Florida.

Other graduates who planned to continue their education after high school, and that was most of them, we're going to technical or trade schools, or out-of-state colleges.

The Pasco School District conducts a survey of graduates and dropouts every year in an effort to learn about the students' high school experiences and educational outcomes. The data are then gathered into a report. This year's report, based on information from the 2007-08 school year, is 58 pages.

Among the findings: 78 percent of the graduates planned to pursue post-secondary education; 45 percent planned to work; 5 percent planned to join the military; and 6 percent were undecided.

Those numbers total more than 100 percent because some students work and attend college or technical school.

The School District compiled the report after distributing the surveys to all 3,615 graduates in 2008. Of those, 80 percent completed and returned the surveys.

In addition, the district contacted 737 dropouts from the 2007-08 school year and 218 - or 30 percent - responded.

Of those, 70 percent said the main reason they dropped out is they hadn't earned enough credits to graduate. Among other reasons given: missed too many days, did not pass the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, lost interest or did not feel part of the school.

The report notes that the School District has seen an improvement in its graduation rate and a decrease in its dropout rate.

The graduation rate in 2008 was 79.5 percent, up from 73.7 percent the previous year. The statewide graduation rate for 2008 was 75.4 percent.

Pasco's dropout rate in 2007-08 was 2.1 percent, down from 3.5 percent the year before, the report said. The state's 2007-08 dropout rate was 2.6 percent.

The large gap between the graduation rate and the dropout rate is because the two numbers are calculated differently.

The graduation rate is the percentage of students who graduated within four years of entering ninth-grade for the first time. A student must earn a standard diploma, a special diploma or a diploma issued after successful completion of a GED exam to be considered a graduate.

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