North Carolina New Schools: Results | Overview

Early results from North Carolina's innovative high schools indicate that not only are more students staying in school - more are graduating ready for college, career and life.

The annual dropout rate for North Carolina's innovative high schools in 2010-11 was 2 percent - significantly below the statewide rate of 3.43 percent. For early college high schools, it was less than 1 percent. About one of every three innovative high schools -- 37 of 106 -- reported no dropouts.

Nearly three quarters of all innovative high schools had no 9th grade dropouts in 2010-11, and half promoted every 9th grader to 10th grade. Research shows that 9th grade is when most students drop out, so keeping kids in school through their freshman year is critical to their eventual graduation.

Three quarters of community college courses taken by early college students in 2009-10 received a passing grade of C or better. For courses taken by their college-age peers, 70 percent earned a C or better.

More than half of all innovative high schools in 2009-10 reached their academic growth targets set by the state. More than three-quarters of innovative high schools achieved "Adequate Yearly Progress," or AYP, under the federal No Child Left Behind law. 

The combined graduation rate for 76 innovative high schools with cohorts completing in 2012 was 88 percent, compared to a statewide rate of 80.2 percent for all high schools. Early college high schools had a combined graduation rate of 93.5 percent.

The median suspension rate for 106 innovative high schools in 2009-10 was 9 suspensions for 100 students, compared to a median of 24 per 100 students for all high schools in the state. For the 70 early college high schools open last year, the median suspension rate was 6 per 100 students.

About 54 percent of teachers in innovative high schools believe strongly that their schools are "a good place to work and learn," compared to about 38 percent of teachers in all NC high schools, based on North Carolina's 2012 Teacher Working Conditions survey.

Review our presentation of 2009-10 student achievement results for innovative high schools.

Specific data about North Carolina New Schools schools and comparison schools across the state are available here. For profiles of individual North Carolina schools, visit NC School Report Cards.