More Hawaii Public School Students Ready for College, Class of 2012 Data Show

News Release from Hawaii DoE May 8, 2013

HONOLULU - More Hawaii public school students from the Class of 2012 enrolled in college compared to the previous year’s graduates, and they were better prepared for mathematics and English courses, new figures show.

The new College and Career Readiness Indicators reports, released today by Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education and the Hawaii State Department of Education (DOE), demonstrate improvements by public school students at every step of the college-readiness pipeline. Among the highlights:

• The percentage of students taking Advanced Placement exams increased to 24 percent.
• College enrollment among graduates increased from 53 percent to 54 percent.
• The percentage of students who enrolled in a University of Hawaii campus in college-level math (24 percent) and college-level English (42 percent) both increased by four percentage points over the class of 2011.
• The percentage of students requiring remedial classes dropped to 31 percent in English and remained at 36 percent for math.

“This new data is very encouraging, and the upward trend in college-going rates is a positive sign for our students and the state’s economic outlook,” said DOE Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi. “Our culture around using data for improvement has changed considerably. The College and Career Readiness Indicators reports provide school administrators and educators with a diverse set of data that will help inform critical decision-making to ensure our graduates are ready to enter college and compete in a global workforce. The improvements on all of the indicators reflect our ongoing statewide reforms and we expect continued improvement over time.”

A number of high schools made significant, double-digit percentage gains in college-going rates over a two-year period. Kapaa High on Kauai increased its rate by 13 percentage points, to 59 percent for the class of 2012 compared to 46 percent for the Class of 2010. Farrington High’s rate rose by 12 percentage points, to 48 percent from 36 percent, and rates for Pahoa and Baldwin high schools jumped 11 percent over the same two-year period.

“The College and Career Readiness Indicators reports are an important tool to measure the college readiness of our public high school students, and to gauge progress on their assessments and college remediation rates. This information is invaluable to the Hawaii P-20 goal of 55 percent of working age adults having a 2- or 4-year college degree by 2025,” said Karen Lee, executive director of Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education. “We are very pleased to see college-going rates and college preparation increase over the past three years.”

The College and Career Readiness Indicators (CCRI) reports are an annual collaboration between the Hawaii State Department of Education and the University of Hawaii, coordinated by Hawai‘i P-20 Partnerships for Education, to present information on how well Hawaii public school graduates are prepared for college. Hawaii’s CCRI reports are continuously recognized by national organizations, including the Education Sector, the Data Quality Campaign, Achieve, and the National Governors Association, as a leading example of both collaboration among K-12 and higher education and for providing useful information on college readiness. The full reports can be found at: http://www.p20hawaii.org/CCRI2012

Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education, a statewide partnership led by the Executive Office on Early Learning, the Hawaii State Department of Education and the University of Hawaii System works to strengthen the education pipeline from early childhood through higher education so that all students achieve college and career success. Hawaii P-20’s partners share a sense of urgency about the need to improve Hawaii’s educational outcomes in an increasingly global economy, and have established a goal of 55% of Hawaii’s working age adults having a 2- or 4-year college degree by 2025. For more information, visit http://www.p20hawaii.org.

The Hawaii State Department of Education’s mission states: We serve our community by developing the academic achievement, character, and social-emotional well-being of our students to the fullest potential. We work with partners, families and communities to ensure that all students reach their aspirations from early learning through college, career and citizenship. For more information, visit www.hawaiidoe.org.

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