Data-driven Insights: understanding disparities in dropout, graduation rates across North Dakota

As the country focused on Native American Heritage Month in November, North Dakota educators continued their year-round efforts to improve graduation rates for American Indian students. The Department of Public Instruction unveiled its latest annual report in September, revealing the dropout and graduation rates for the 2023-2024 academic year. Buffalo’s Fire reviewed the North Dakota DPI dataset and conducted an analysis, finding that Native students experience greater disparities in graduation rates compared to white students, with considerable variation among schools.

The state’s K-12 system has a total enrollment of 118,878 students. American Indians constitute 10% of this population, making them the largest minority group, as reported by Insights North Dakota, the state’s official source for information about public education. Approximately 82% of students graduated within four years.

High Performing Schools Success Factors

St. John High School in St. John has the highest American Indian graduation rate for the 2023-2024 academic year, approaching 100%. The next highest rates are Legacy High School in Bismarck, with 95%, and Eight Mile High School in Trenton, at 91%.

St. John High School, with a dropout rate of just 2%, is also among the top three schools in North Dakota with the lowest dropout rates for the 2023-2024 academic year. The other schools sharing this rate are New Town Middle School, Turtle Mountain Community Middle School in Belcourt and Wachter Middle School in Bismarck.

Charles Anderson, principal of St. John High School, has been an educator for 18 years, including 12 years in his current role. Along with alternative education instructor Dawn Mohberg, they have prioritized a credit recovery program that allows students to make up credits for classes they didn’t pass.

“For example, let’s say they didn’t pass the fourth quarter, and that caused them to have an F,” Anderson said. “We’re going to have them redo the fourth quarter, if that’s what is the reason. We’re not going to have them do the whole semester.”

Anderson said educators at St. John High School focus on fostering relationships with students and meeting students halfway. “It’s really important to us to get to know our students, to try to understand our students, and to be there for our students,” he said. “That’s kind of the culture we’ve built in our building.”

With a 95-100% graduation rate over the past 10 years, St. John High School was recognized with the Distinguished School Award for the 2022-2023 academic year. This last spring, 24 students graduated; 23 were American Indian. Educators acknowledge that each school has unique needs.

“We’re constantly pushing, and thinking about how can we improve,” Anderson said. “What are some outside-the-box things that we could do? And opportunities for our students?”

American Indian Graduation Rates and Disparities

In North Dakota, Indigenous students are less likely to graduate high school than other students. The traditional American Indian graduation rate for the 2022-2023 academic year sat at 77% compared to 93% for white students, according to DPI.

For the 2023-2024 academic year, the graduation rates for American Indian students are 78% for “completer” students, 77% for the traditional graduation rate and 82% for the overall state graduation rate. DPI defines completer rates as all who graduate in a given year, whether with a traditional high school diploma or a General Educational Development certificate. The traditional graduation rate is based on seniors who graduate with a traditional diploma during that year.

The Complex Picture of Graduation and Dropout Rates

Understanding the state’s American Indian graduation and dropout rates requires considering multiple factors.

According to Ross Roemmich, the management information systems director at DPI, the data includes both low and high ranges due to many variables and to protect student identities.

In the 2023-2024 dataset, the state average dropout rate for American Indian students was 15%. The dropout rate remained the same compared to the 2022-2023 dataset.

According to the latest dataset, the two schools with the highest American Indian dropout rates are Souris River Campus Community High School in Minot and South Central Alternative High School in Bismarck, both at 59%.

Despite the data, several factors are not included in the numbers. Souris River Campus Alternative High School has 55 enrolled students, with approximately 13 of them identifying as American Indian, according to Principal Brian Aufforth. Because of the school’s small population, a single dropout can significantly impact the data more than larger institutions.

“Classrooms here are smaller, so they should have more one-on-one with teachers,” Aufforth said. “Max classroom size is 10 per class. And with that one-on-one, they should be able to get more support, more direct instruction for each individual student.”

Other schools are similar. South Central High School, for example, is not a typical high school; it serves a concentrated population of students at high risk of dropping out. According to Joe Kalvoda, the principal of SCHS, many of their students have already dropped out of the traditional high schools in the area.

“If not physically, at least mentally, they’ve dropped out,” he said. “That being said, we do a lot to try and engage the student to get them back into coming to school and being successful to give them the opportunity.”

Students face various challenges that make it difficult to stay in school, such as poverty, family obligations, special circumstances or stress from their home life. Additionally, Kalvoda noted that for some students, the current education system simply does not meet their needs.

“Traditional schools function in a controlled manner,” he said. “They’re going to tell you, sit here, do this. Then the bell rings, you get up, and you go across the hall. It’s very much about structure and order. While that works for a large portion of the population, there are students who don’t do well with that environment.”

South Central High School serves 118 students, with 35% to 40% identifying as Native, according to Kalvoda, who has been principal for the past 12 years. He explained that the school aims to give students a second chance to complete their education. South Central uses an individualized instruction model, offering flexible schedules that cater to students’ unique needs and circumstances.

“I always tell students who come here, this is a second chance for you to be successful, but it’s also a second chance for us as Bismarck Public Schools to serve you better and to try another model to see if we can help you,” Kalvoda said.

Ongoing Solutions to Increase Graduation Rates

Lucy Fredericks, director of Indian and Multicultural Education at DPI, said the department continuously seeks solutions to improve the graduation rate and decrease the dropout rate. The department sponsored a North Dakota Dropout Prevention & Reengagement Summit for three years from 2017-2019. The summit has not been held since 2019.

The department has initiated programs like Choice Ready to prepare students for higher education and the workforce.

St. John High School has been implementing the Choice Ready program. Anderson said the school tries to provide students with career opportunities by offering programs such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration certification, CPR certification and welding classes.

“I think Choice Ready is beneficial because our students aren’t pigeonholed to just what they’re doing academically,” Anderson said. “It’s how do we get kids ready for when they graduate high school for the path that they want and the choices that they have?”

DPI also began the Native American Needs Assessment Survey six years ago. Each need is linked to a variety of evidence-based strategies and resources. The Action Plan is a living document, updated annually with additional needs, strategies and resources.

“One of the questions on the survey was, ‘How can we assist you with attendance, graduation rates and dropout prevention?’’ Fredericks said. “That was one of the areas that came back as the schools and the educators wanted more information and strategies for them to support their students.”

Endgoal: Supporting Students

Fredericks said that despite ongoing challenges, the dropout rate has decreased since she joined DPI. “We still have work to do,” she said. “But just seeing that increase from the last 10 to 12 years is really something that we are happy about and are glad to see that it’s going in the right direction.”

Aufforth and Kalvoda also agree that numbers don’t tell the whole story. Kalvoda emphasized that success is measured by perspective and the impact of changing young people’s lives.

“People think if the student doesn’t graduate, they’re a failure,” he said. “That’s not true. We have a lot of students who come here whose life path is a negative trajectory. They’ve lost hope for a positive future. We help students find hope for a positive future and find a new path. If that includes graduating, great. But if it doesn’t –– that’s still okay.”

Ultimately, educators are working to improve the graduation rate by creating a safe and healthy learning environment.

“We know that if students come here to a place where they are comfortable and successful, they stay in school and we get them across the stage [at graduation],” Anderson said. “We’re extremely proud of the school that we have.”