Editor’s note: Updated Feb. 1 to include Sage International School on the large, nontraditional list.
Not as many Idaho students are graduating on time as state education leaders would like, but some schools have met and exceeded those high hopes, and others are closing in.
EdNews combed recently-released data from the Idaho Department of Education to identify the schools that are at the top, exceeding the statewide average (81% in 2023), and sometimes, even the lofty state goal (95%).
Read on to find out which schools have the greatest percentage of students earning a high school diploma on time.
A few things to keep in mind before you dig into the data:
- Senior class size vs. four-year cohort size: We’ve included the four-year cohort size for each school. A cohort is different than the senior class size, partly because it includes students who drop out between freshman and senior year.
- Here’s how the IDE defines a cohort: “Students who are entering grade 9 for the first time form a cohort that is subsequently ‘adjusted’ by adding any students who transfer into the school during the next four years and subtracting any students who transfer out, immigrate to another country, or pass away during that same time period.”
- Our categories: There are myriad possible ways to consider and arrange data. We’ve done so in the way we thought fairest, trying to compare the most similar schools, according to size and type.
- An imperfect comparison: It’s still an imperfect comparison; it doesn’t account for the many other differences between schools, such as location, student demographics, the school’s level of funding, and more. It’s just intended to be a glimpse into the data.
- Find your school or district here: You can also search the entire dataset (hit “command F” on the document and a search bar will appear) to find your school if it’s not listed here, or use it to compile the data in different ways.
Here are the standouts, as sorted by:
- Small traditional schools; large traditional schools; small nontraditional schools; and large nontraditional schools.
Top small traditional schools (cohorts fewer than 100)
| District | School | Four-year graduation rate | Cohort size |
| Lake Pend Oreille | Clark Fork High | 100 | 23 |
| Grace | Grace High | 100 | 37 |
| Clark County | Clark County District | 100 | 11 |
| Kootenai | Kootenai High | 100 | 6 |
| South Lemhi | Leadore Schools | 100 | 6 |
| Mullan | Mullan Schools | 100 | 11 |
| Castleford | Castleford Schools | 100 | 19 |
| Murtaugh | Murtaugh Schools | 100 | 23 |
| McCall-Donnelly | McCall-Donnelly High | 97.7 | 86 |
| Oneida County | Malad Senior High | 97.6 | 83 |
Top large traditional schools (cohorts of 100 or more)
| District | School | Four-year graduation rate | Cohort size |
| Lakeland | Timberlake High | 97.6 | 124 |
| Madison | Madison Senior High | 96.6 | 409 |
| Snake River | Snake River High | 96.2 | 132 |
| Fruitland | Fruitland High | 95.5 | 132 |
| Bonneville | Thunder Ridge High | 95 | 379 |
| West Ada | Eagle High | 94.4 | 447 |
| West Ada | Owyhee High | 94.4 | 301 |
| Bonneville | Hillcrest High | 92.9 | 252 |
| Minidoka County | Minico Senior High | 92.9 | 269 |
| Middleton | Middleton High | 92.8 | 305 |
Top small nontraditional (charter, magnet, online, alternative) schools (cohorts fewer than 40)
| Local education agency | School | Four-year graduation rate | Cohort size |
| White Pine Charter, Inc. | White Pine Charter | 100 | 5 |
| North Idaho STEM Charter Academy, Inc. | North Idaho STEM Charter Academy | 100 | 24 |
| Gem Prep: Pocatello | Gem Prep: Pocatello | 100 | 1 |
| Gemp Prep: Meridian | Gemp Prep: Meridian | 100 | 6 |
| Gem Prep: Nampa | Gem Prep: Nampa | 100 | 1 |
| West Ada | Meridian Technical Charter | 97.2 | 36 |
| Victory Charter | Victory Charter | 96.8 | 31 |
| Liberty Charter | Liberty Charter | 96.4 | 28 |
| West Ada | Idaho Fine Arts Academy (magnet) | 96.3 | 27 |
| Taylor’s Crossing Public Charter | Taylor’s Crossing Public CHarter | 93.8 | 16 |
| American Heritage Charter | American Heritage Charter | 93.8 | 16 |
Top large nontraditional (charter, magnet, online, alternative) schools (cohorts of 40 or more)
| District | School | Four-year graduation rate | Cohort size |
| West Ada | Renaissance (magnet) | 99.3 | 140 |
| West Ada | Meridian Medical Arts Charter | 97.6 | 41 |
| Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy | Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy | 96.5 | 57 |
| Idaho Falls | Compass Academy | 95.4 | 109 |
| Charter School, Inc. | Vision Charter | 95.8 | 48 |
| Lakeland | Mountainview Alternative High | 91.1 | 45 |
| Bonneville | Bonneville Online School | 89.8 | 88 |
| Mountain Home | Bennett Mountain Alternative | 88.9 | 45 |
| Post Falls | New Vision Alternative | 88.9 | 45 |
| Sage International | Sage International School | 88.2 | 51 |
Data analyst Randy Schrader contributed to this report.
