Prince George’s Co. public schools boast higher graduation rate despite COVID

Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland have something to be happy about: Graduation rates were up for 2021, despite the pandemic.

The system’s four-year adjusted rate increased by 1.5 percentage points, to 77.6%.



In a release, PGCPS said 10 schools had a graduation rate of more than 90%.

That’s according to data from the Maryland State Department of Education report card.

In addition, the high school dropout rate fell to a five-year low, PGCPS said, at 15.36% — in 2020, it was 17.8%. Gains were made among Hispanic students, English language learners and students who come from low-income families.

“Despite challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and distance learning, we have made progress,” schools CEO Monica Goldson said in a statement. “I remain grateful for the commitment and resilience of our students, educators and staff who continue to keep teaching and learning at the forefront.”

According to the MDSE report card, the graduation stats for nearby counties are:

  • Anne Arundel County: 90.25%
  • Baltimore City: 69.2%
  • Baltimore County: 86.2%
  • Calvert County: 94.74%
  • Carroll County: 94.99%
  • Charles County: 93.58%
  • Frederick County: 93.73%
  • Howard County: 94.05%
  • Montgomery County: 91.37%

Overall, Maryland schools had a graduation rate of 87.2%.

While MDSE said more in-depth report cards for 2020-2021 aren’t available because of the impact of the pandemic, overall statistics are online.

Will Vitka

William Vitka is a Digital Writer/Editor for WTOP.com. He's been in the news industry for over a decade. Before joining WTOP, he worked for CBS News, Stuff Magazine, The New York Post and wrote a variety of books—about a dozen of them, with more to come.

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