BY BETH VELLIQUETTE
bvelliquette@heraldsun.com; 419-6632
CHAPEL HILL -- The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and the Orange County Schools saw a drop in the number of students who dropped out of school last year, but the Chatham County Schools saw a sharp increase in the number of dropouts.
The state Department of Instruction recently released its report that compares dropout rates in each school system during the 2008-09 school year to the previous school year.
During the 2007-08 school year, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools reported 57 dropouts as compared to 52 in the 2008-09 school year for a dropout rate of 1.4, an 8.8 percent decrease in its dropout rate from the previous year.
Orange County Schools also saw a decrease in its dropout rate. In 2007-08, 107 students dropped out of school, but in 2008-09, 84 students dropped out for a dropout rate of 3.62, a decrease of 21.5 percent.
"The district's falling dropout rate is the result of the concerted efforts of our teachers, counselors and administration and the programs the district has put in place," said Denise Morton, chief academic officer for the district, in a written statement.
Chatham County Schools was listed as one of the school districts in the state that had one of the highest increases in its dropout rate with an increase of 45.7 percent from 2007-08 to 2008-09.
In the 2007-08 school year, 92 students dropped out of school, and during the next school year, 134 students dropped out for a rate of 5.69.
The state dropout rate was 4.27, which was a decrease from the previous school year's rate of 4.97.
Beth McCullough, spokeswoman for the Chatham County Schools, said the system had been making progress on its dropout rate, and she wasn't sure why so many students dropped out of school last year.
But so far this year, the system seems to be doing better, she said.
Last year, 69 students dropped out during the first semester, and this year 32 students dropped out during the first semester, she said.
Chatham County Schools has initiated two programs this year to try to keep students engaged in their work and stay in school until they graduate, McCullough said.
One is its alternative school, Sage Academy, where students can earn a 21-credit diploma, enabling them to graduate earlier or make it easier for them to catch up if they've fallen behind, she said.
Also, every high school student in the county's three high schools and at Sage Academy were issued a laptop computer, and they're finding it easier to take notes, conduct research and access programs to help them with their work, McCullough said.
