Gilroy's Hispanic Students Have Much Higher Drop Out Rate Than Their Peers

Hispanic and African-American students in Gilroy drop out of high school at far higher rates than their peers, according to a data report released today through the Santa Clara Office of Education.

The report examined four years worth of “cohort data,” or that of a group of students that entered high school together at the same time, for all grade nine through 12 districts in Santa Clara County.

"We need to do a better job of serving all of our students," said Dr. Charles Weis, Santa Clara County Superintendent of Schools. "When they drop out, we not only have failed them, we have failed the entire community."

In the Gilroy Unified District, which boasts about 800 students, the yearly drop out rate for Hispanic students in is 18.6 percent. For African-American students, it figures at 17.7 percent, compared to 5.2 percent for white students. There were no drop outs among Asian, Pacific Islander and Filipino student subgroups. 

The total graduation rate for Hispanic students in Gilroy is 74 percent. For African-American students it is 76.5 percent, 91.9 percent for white students, and 100 percent for Asian, Pacific Islander and Filipino students.

The data is roughly in sync with countywide averages, in which Hispanic and African-American students have a 74.4 percent graduation rate, and 18.2 percent dropout rate.  In the county, Hispanics comprise 37 percent of all students, yet account for 69 percent of all drop outs.

The overall graduation rate for the county 78.3 percent. In Gilroy it is 79 percent, with 631 out of 795 students completing their high school degree in the 2009/2010 school year.

The report also revealed that half of Santa Clara County high school students are graduating with the necessary coursework to attend college in the UC/CU system.

In Gilroy, 47 percent of students take the SAT or ACT, which most colleges and universities require for entrance, compared to 78 percent for Santa Clara County. 

A more comprehensive breakdown of the data is available through the California Office of Education.