1 in 20 students drop out of school in Charles County

Charles public schools' dropout rate approximately doubled from 2019 to 2023, according to information presented at a recent school board meeting.

Kevin Lowndes, chief of teaching and learning for the school system, presented the most current data during the board of education’s work session on June 17, showing the county’s dropout rate, which was less than 3% in 2019, increased to almost 6% in 2023.

This increased dropout rate indicates that approximately 1 in 20 students drops out of school in Charles County.

The legal dropout age in Maryland is currently 18 years old, according to Maryland’s Compulsory Education Law. Maryland regulations define a dropout as “a student who, for any reason other than death, leaves school before graduation or the completion of a Maryland approved educational program (including a special education program) and is not known to enroll in another school or state-approved program.”

Henry E. Lackey High School and Thomas Stone High School had the two highest dropout rates, which are both over 8%.

La Plata High School and St. Charles High School’s dropout rates more than doubled from 2022 to 2023. La Plata, which was at 3.39% in 2022, increased to 7.3% in 2023, and St. Charles, which had a less than 3% dropout rate, saw an increase to 6.58% in 2023.

“The dropout rates doubled over the last year. It is really concerning to see those numbers jump out at particular schools,” Nicole M. Kreamer, vice chairperson of the board, said. “I would encourage [Superintendent Maria] Navarro and the team to … take a deeper look at those particular schools.”

North Point High School had the lowest dropout rate in 2023 at less than 3%.

The percentage increase from 2022 to 2023 was much higher in Charles County than Maryland, but the overall rate remained lower. Maryland’s rate was 9.8% in 2023.

Calvert County Public School’s dropout rate in 2023 was 3.8%, according to the Maryland State Department of Education. St. Mary’s County Public School’s dropout rate was 6.86%.

Almost 1 in 5 Charles public school students who dropped out of the graduating class of 2023 were Hispanic, but the Hispanic student population only made up 11% of the class.

Many of the board members expressed concerns about the school system’s future.

“I just want us to get a plan together,” said school board member Dottery Butler-Washington during the board’s work session last month. “I do not believe in giving up on any child.”

In Charles County, economically disadvantaged students made up more than 20% of the 2023 graduating class, however, they only accounted for approximately 15% of the 2023 dropout rate. On their own, economically disadvantaged students had less than a 5% dropout rate in 2023.

“The state on average is almost a little over two times more likely to have economically disadvantaged students dropout than Charles County, which was a surprise to us,” Navarro said. “[The pandemic] devastated students regardless of their economic situation.”

Black or African American students made up more than half of Charles public school system’s graduating class of 2023, but accounted for less than 44% of the students who dropped out.

Male students had a 7.4% dropout rate, while female students had a 4.1% dropout rate, according to the Maryland State Department of Education.

The percentage of ninth graders who were "on track" to graduate in the class of 2024 was 67.1%. This was a 22% decrease from the class of 2023’s on-track ninth graders.

A student is determined to be on track if they earn at least five credits by the end of their freshman year, fail no more than one semester of a core course, and attend school more than 90% of the time. These criteria were updated in 2023, abiding by the requirements set out in the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, the state's education reform plan.

Although Charles schools' four-year graduation rate has remained above Maryland’s rate for many years, it has been decreasing, and in 2023 the county’s graduation rate was 90.2%. However, the county’s five-year graduation rate has remained fairly consistent for years, and in 2022, it was 94.2%.

“I think we would all agree that the goal is they finish on time,” Kreamer said. “Since 2020 we’ve had a decrease in the four-year [graduation rate]. … We don't want to continue on that trajectory.”