Data from the New York State Education Department found that 2020 graduation rates for the Yonkers Public Schools continued to grown and improve. “Yonkers achieved their highest graduation rate in decades– 90.6% – and surpassed the State graduation rate of 84.8%. Most significant for an urban school district, Yonkers continues to close the achievement gaps among all race, gender and sub groups. Under extraordinary challenging circumstances, our dropout rate remained constant at 3.4%,” said YPS Superintendent Dr. Edwin Quezada.
“The resilience and persistence of the Class of 2020 graduates and their families as well as the relentless commitment of Yonkers administrators and teachers resonates in the graduation data released today,” stated Dr. Edwin M. Quezada, Superintendent of Schools.
Over the past ten years, the District has focused significant resources into closing the achievement gap across race, gender and sub groups including English Language Learners and Students with Disabilities. In particular, intentional efforts towards male achievement with initiatives such as Yonkers My Brother’s Keeper that engage community supports for students.
Board of Education President Rev. Steve Lopez added, “Yonkers continues on a positive trajectory even under the most challenging times for our community. The first of the Large City Districts to graduate over 90%, Yonkers Class of 2020 graduation rate of 91% surpassed the State’s rate of 85% and Westchester County’s rate of 90%. These results dramatically demonstrate the outstanding work of Dr. Quezada, all of our employees, students and families.”
Yonkers on-time graduation rate continued to climb to 90.6% in 2020, a growth of 2.6% points.The graduation rate is strong across race, gender and sub groups, with 90% of Black students, 90% Latino students, 90% Male, 91% Female, 85% Multi-Lingual Learners, and 68% Students with Disabilities graduating on time.
The gap in graduation rates between males and females continued to shrink, for 2020, the female to male gap is 1.5% percentage points as compared to an 8.2% percentage point gap in 2019.
The dropout rate for Yonkers students remains at 3% for all students as compared to the State rate of 5%
Yonkers English Language Learners dropout rate is 9% significantly lower than the State’s 25%, New York City’s 23%, Buffalo’s 30%, Rochester’s 30% and Syracuse’s 23%
Yonkers Students with Disabilities dropout rate is 5% lower than the State’s 8%, New York City’s 8%, Buffalo’s 15%, Rochester’s 20% and Syracuse’s 13%
Achievement outcomes for Yonkers students receiving Regents diplomas under the NYSED waivers for 2020 was an indication of the Class of 2020’s preparedness
80% of the graduates did not require any Regents waivers because the students met their Regents exams requirements before March 2020.
89% of all students earned Regents Diplomas (69%) and Regents with Advanced Designation (20%)
“Once again, Yonkers Public Schools continue to excel and beat all odds, especially this year as we all face the most challenging of times, coupled with chronic underfunding by the State,” said Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano.
“Over the last nine years, the graduation rate has increased over 18% — outperforming the State’s and Big 5 city schools’ rates. Congratulations to the dedicated Yonkers Board of Trustees, our talented Superintendent and the administration staff and teachers who commit themselves each day to the successes of our schools and who work tirelessly to ensure our students reach their fullest potential.”
As Yonkers Rising celebrates the hard work of the Class of 2020, and all Yonkers High School students, next week we will turn to COVID related challengess that all school disricts, including YPS, are facing. Noted Civil Rights attorney Michael Sussman, has penned another letter to the school district, concerning “disparities in learing and a lack of smooth transition to online learning,”
Questions have been raised again by parents and education groups in Yonkers concerning how many students do not have a device to learn from at home with, and how many students are using their cell phones to check in for attendance but little else.
Finally, parents are also concerned with the number of substitute teachers being used in the district because of the many teachers that will not go to school to teach because of COVID fears. Some parents have called for those teachers who have taken days off to be allowed to teach from home because substitute teachers are unable to teach through Zoom or even when everyone is in the classroom.
More about this next week.
