January 26, 2023

PHOENIX – Phoenix High School’s 2021-22 graduation rate hit 95% for the second year in a row according to data released by the Oregon Department of Education Thursday, giving PHS the highest on-time graduation rate in the Rogue Valley.

According to the data, 141 of the 148 students, or 95.27%, in Phoenix High’s adjusted cohort last school year earned their diploma. PHS also saw a 96.6% 2021-22 cohort completer rate.

This marks the second year in a row that Phoenix High had a 95% graduation rate after it hit 95.24% in 2020-21.

“These numbers are just so encouraging and show that the systems and supports our team have implemented are serving students well,” Phoenix-Talent superintendent Brent Barry said. “We have a phenomenal staff at PHS, and throughout our entire district, that does a great job educating our students while also preparing them for their next stage of life. And even though we knew that already, it’s nice to see all the hard work reflected in the data. In addition, these numbers truly show the resilient nature of our kids and the families that support them.”

Phoenix High’s graduation rate was also sterling across multiple key demographics, including: Hispanic/Latino (58 graduates, greater than 95% rate); economically disadvantaged (greater than 95%); underserved races/ethnicities (57 graduates, 95%); English learners (93.3%); Homeless students (92.4%); and migrant students (25 graduates, greater than 95%). 

Also, greater than 95% of Phoenix High’s career and technical participants and concentrators, two groups represented by a combined 207 students, graduated on time. 

“I’d say that the graduation rate success can be attributed to three things: the hard work put in by students every day, the dedication to strong teaching practices by teachers and the encouragement and accountability that families provide students,” PHS principal Kalin Cross said. “We’re incredibly proud of this data and of our community whose perseverance and determination continue to support our goal of preparing students for the future. It’s a great day to be a Pirate!”

A cohort is a group of students who first entered high school in a given school year, which was the 2018-19 school year for this report. The ODE then adds to a cohort those students who transferred into a school from homeschooling, private schools or outside Oregon, and removes from a cohort students who have a documented transfer out of Oregon public schools, emigrated to another country or died. The remaining number is known as the adjusted cohort.

The four-year cohort graduation rate is the percentage of students in the adjusted cohort who earned a regular or modified high school diploma within four years of their first enrollment in high school.

When taking into account local charter school Armadillo Technical Institute's four-year graduation rate of 74.3%, the Phoenix-Talent School District’s total graduation rate for the 2021-22 school year was 90.43%.