Hamilton County students are seeing big dividends due to Hamilton County Department of Education’s focus on preparing students for careers or college, officials said. 76 percent of all HCDE graduates enrolled in a two- or four-year college, or other post-secondary career option after graduation. That is a five per cent increase from 2015.
HCDE Interim Superintendent Dr. Kirk Kelly is thrilled to share the news. He said, “Not only are we seeing an increase in students attending college, but we are seeing an across the board increase in the number of students attending traditional four-year colleges.”
More than 1,000 students who graduated in 2016 enrolled in a four-year college this past fall semester. During 2015, that number was 885.
“This is further proof that HCDE’s strategic focus area of creating pathways and opportunities for students as they prepare for post-secondary education and careers is working in a tangible way,” said HCDE Chief Academic Officer Jill Levine.
A deeper dive into the data also shows HCDE students are attending several different institutions of higher learning. Chattanooga’s Public Education Foundation worked with Hamilton County career counselors to track students after graduation, and they determined the Class of 2016 enrolled in colleges or training programs across the United States.
“The students who graduated from our public schools in May enrolled this fall in 186 postsecondary institutions in 38 states and the United Kingdom at 143 different four year institutions, 39 different two year institutions, and 4 different career training programs,” said PEF President Dan Challener. “This is strong evidence that our students and their families and Hamilton County’s counselors, college advisors, and teachers are working hard to find the college that is the “right fit” for each student.”
HCDE administrators will visit each high school to delve into the numbers during the first week of April.