Last spring, 81% of Idaho’s high school students graduated on time — a slight increase from 2022.
All told, nearly 21,000 students graduated in four years, and about 4,800 did not.
Still, 2023’s four-year graduation rate remains far short of the state goal: that nearly 95% of students earn a high school diploma on time. It also holds with a familiar pattern — four-year graduation rates have hovered between about 80% and 82% since 2016.
Four-year graduation rates
| Class | Four-year grad rate | State four-year grad rate goals |
| 2023 | 81.1% | 94.9% |
| 2022 | 79.9% | 94.9% |
| 2021 | 80.1% | 92.4% |
| 2020 | 82.1% | 89.9% |
| 2019 | 80.7% | 87.3% |
| 2018 | 80.6% | 84.8% |
| 2017 | 79.7% | 82.2% |
| 2016 | 79.7% | Baseline year |
| 2015 | 78.9% | Not available |
The Idaho Department of Education’s recently-released data also shows that:
- At-risk student populations had lower graduation rates than their peers
- More than 50 districts and local education agencies had fewer than 81% of students graduating on time
- More than 100 traditional schools and charters had fewer than 81% of students graduating on time
Nationally, Idaho has one of the lowest four-year graduation rates. In 2022, it was ranked 47th, outpacing only Alaska, Arizona, and New Mexico, according to an EdNews compilation of data from state departments of education. Nationwide rankings from 2023 are not yet available.
Read on for a closer look at the districts and charters with the highest and lowest graduation rates, and to see which student populations are not graduating at pace with peers.
Highest and lowest graduation rates, by districts and charters
The charts below show the districts and local education agencies with the state’s highest and lowest graduation rates. As you look at the data, keep in mind that cohort sizes are not accounted for (some districts have small student populations, so their data skews easily).
For a complete dataset, go here.
Traditional and non-traditional (charter) districts with the highest four-year graduation rates
| Traditional districts | Four-year graduation rate | Nontraditional local education agency | Four-year graduation rate |
| Grace | 100 | White Pine Charter | 100 |
| Clark County | 100 | North Idaho STEM Charter Academy | 100 |
| Kootenai | 100 | Gem Prep: Pocatello | 100 |
| South Lemhi | 100 | Gem Prep: Meridian | 100 |
| Mullan | 100 | Gem Prep: Nampa | 100 |
| Castleford | 100 | Victory Charter | 96.8 |
| Murtaugh | 100 | Coeur d’Alene Charter | 96.5 |
| Notus | 96.8 | Liberty Charter | 96.4 |
| Bruneau-Grand View | 95.7 | Vision Charter | 95.8 |
| Rockland | 95 | Taylor’s Crossing Public Charter | 93.8 |
| Parma | 94.9 | American Heritage Charter | 93.8 |
Traditional and nontraditional (charter) districts with lowest four-year graduation rates
| Traditional districts | Four-year graduation rate | Nontraditional local education agency | Four-year graduation rate |
| Plummer-Worley | 50 | Elevate Academy Nampa | 0 |
| Cascade | 50.3 | Alturas Preparatory Academy | 0 |
| Cambridge | 60 | Carinal Academy Incorporated | 13.3 |
| Caldwell | 63.2 | Pathways in Education — Nampa | 16.2 |
| Mountain View | 65.4 | Idaho Virtual Education Partners | 25 |
| West Bonner County | 66.2 | Kootenai Bridge Academy | 46.7 |
| Highlands | 66.7 | iSucceed Virtual High | 47.9 |
| Midvale | 69.2 | Idaho Virtual High | 51 |
| Jerome | 69.6 | North Valley Academy | 57.1 |
| Challis | 69.6 | Elevate Academy | 58.1 |
Large traditional districts, ranked
This table ranks the state’s ten largest districts from highest four-year graduation rate to lowest.
| District | Four-year graduation rate |
| Bonneville | 90.8 |
| Pocatello | 90 |
| Oneida | 89.2 |
| Coeur d’Alene | 88.7 |
| West Ada | 86.7 |
| Boise | 83.4 |
| Vallivue | 82.1 |
| Idaho Falls | 75.6 |
| Nampa | 75.5 |
| Twin Falls | 72.3 |
At-risk student groups are less likely to graduate on time, data shows
Students in foster care, with disabilities, or who are homeless were least likely to graduate on time in 2023, according to the IDE data.
Those student groups were among others (listed below) with four-year graduation rates lower than the state average.
For some student groups, the State Board of Education sets different four-year graduation goals than it does for the general population. In each of those cases below, the student groups were far from achieving the target rate.
| Student groups | Four-year graduation rate | State goal for four-year graduation rate |
| Students in foster care | 41.6% | NA |
| Students with disabilities | 55.5% | 90.1% |
| Students who are homeless | 59.3% | NA |
| English learners | 66.6% | 93.3% |
| Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander | 69.2% | 92.4% |
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 69.6% | 89.6% |
| Migratory students | 70.2% | NA |
| Economically disadvantaged | 70.8% | 93% |
| Black/African American | 72% | 94.5% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 73.5% | 93.4% |
| Two or more races | 76.7% | 94.3% |
| Male | 78.6% | NA |
Idaho Education News data analyst Randy Schrader contributed to this report.