MDE announces Mississippi’s 2024-25 graduation rate of 90.8% and dropout rate of 7%

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:  February 19, 2026

MDE announces Mississippi’s 2024-25 graduation rate of 90.8% and dropout rate of 7%

JACKSON, Miss. – Today, the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) announced the state’s 2024-25 school-year graduation rate is 90.8%, and the dropout rate is 7%.

Among students with disabilities, the 2024-25 graduation rate is 71.1%, and the dropout rate is 14.6%.  The latest rates are based on students who entered ninth grade for the first time during the 2021-22 school year. The statewide graduation rate does not include students who earned a GED or a certificate of completion.

Compared to 2023-24, the statewide dropout rate decreased by 1.5 percentage points and the graduation rate increased by 1.6 percentage points. Among students with disabilities, the graduation rate increased by 5.6 percentage points, and the dropout rate decreased by 5.4 percentage points.

Goal Two of the State Board of Education’s Strategic Plan is that Every Student Graduates from High School and is Ready for College and Career. The increased rates mark overall continuous improvement of Mississippi’s education system in recent years.

Some factors that can be attributed to the 2024-25 rates include quality instructional support from dedicated teachers across the state, increased options for meeting graduation requirements, and an increase of students completing Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. In 2023-24, school districts reported 6,720 students earned industry certifications in CTE programs. CTE completers had the state’s highest average graduation rate of 99.5% for the 2022-23 accountability year.

Mississippi’s graduation rate exceeds the latest national rate of 86.6% from 2021-22 reported by the National Center for Education Statistics. Historically, Mississippi’s public school students have achieved continued improvement. The statewide graduation rate was 74.5% in 2013, and the statewide dropout rate has decreased from 13.9% in 2013.

“These results reflect the hard work of teachers, administrators, parents, and, of course, students,” said Dr. Lance Evans, state superintendent of education. “With continued support from the state Legislature to provide funding, MDE is committed to supporting students with innovative programs and educators with professional learning opportunities designed to produce continued progress across the state.”

View the 2025 Graduation Rate Report at mdek12.org/publicreporting/2026-accountability.

Find all MDE news releases at mdek12.org/news.

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Jean Cook, APR
Chief of Communication
601-359-3515
jcook@mdek12.org

Shanderia Minor
Public Information Officer
601-359-3515
sminor@mdek12.org