SWEETWATER COUNTY — The Wyoming Department of Education (WDE) released the state’s high school graduation rates recently and the data shows that Sweetwater County School District (SCSD) No. 1’s rates increased slightly from the previous year, while SCSD No. 2 decreased slightly.

According to the WDE, Wyoming’s average graduation rate was 81.8 percent in 2021-22, which was a decrease of 0.6 percent from 2020-21’s 82.4 percent.

“Wyoming’s resolve in keeping schools open during the COVID-19 global lockdowns of the 2020-21 school year has proven to be a win for our students and communities,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder said. 

Fifteen schools had a graduation rate of 90 percent or higher, including: Sheridan No. 3, Sublette No. 9, Washakie No. 2, Bighorn No. 4, Sublette No. 1, Fremont No. 24, Uinta No. 4, Teton No. 1, Lincoln No. 1, Laramie No. 2, Park No. 1, Johnson No. 1, Fremont No. 2, Weston No. 1, and Crook No. 1.

“While graduation rates remain relatively stable, there remains work to do to improve rates going forward,” Degenfelder said. “One thing we can look to is the graduation rates of CTE students. The higher graduation rates of CTE students show that when we identify career pathways for students, and work with our business and industry stakeholders, students achieve great success.”

SCSD No. 1 Graduates 280 Students

In the 2021-22 school year, the graduation rate for SCSD No. 1 was 76.3 percent. This was a slight improvement from the 2020-21 graduation rate which was 75.5 percent.

In 2021-22, 280 students graduated of the expected 367 students on a four-year graduation track.

Farson-Eden High School graduated 100 percent of its students in 2021-22. Rock Springs High School graduated 246 students of the expected 329 students, which is a 74.8 percent graduation rate. Black Butte High School’s graduation rate was 84.6 percent, graduating 22 of the expected 26 students.

SCSD No. 2 Graduates 147 Students

SCSD No. 2 saw a slight decrease in its graduation rate in 2021-22 with 84.5 percent, compared to 89.5 percent in 2020-21. The district graduated 147 of the expected 174 students.

Green River High School (GRHS) had a graduation rate of 85.4 percent in 2021-22, whereas the rate was 92.3 percent the year before. In 2021-22, GRHS graduated 134 of 157 students.

Expedition Academy High School saw an increase in its graduation rate, going from 71.4 percent in 2020-21 to 76.5 percent in 2021-22.