Skyline students make a commitment to graduate
Tuesday is the return of school for Idaho Falls School District 91, and one high school is already looking ahead to next May.
Skyline High School is hoping to keep incoming students on track to graduate, and while they may be thinking years ahead, school administrators now is the best time to prepare the classes of 2015 and 2016.
“Our main goal here at Skyline High School is to get every student to graduate from this school and to prepare them for the future,” said student adviser Gregg Baczuk. “We want them to understand that that’s what we’re going to be emphasizing throughout every class and every year of their career here.”
Faculty and staff at Skyline High School wore graduation gowns and sashes during a school assembly Tuesday, as part of the school’s push for every student to graduate.
Students also took a pledge to commit to graduate and signed a graduation gown, which will be worn by the faculty speaker at their graduation ceremonies.
“We have a new program here called Renaissance, and it’s driven by students who are committed to helping their classmates graduate,” said Baczuk. “So there will be programs and activities all year long designed by these students to help us reach our goal of every student graduating.”
According to statistics from the Idaho Department of Education, the state had an 89.7 percent graduation rate in 2008-2009 and a 91.7 percent in 2009-2010. While the numbers are pretty high, students say they’d like to see everyone in their class receive a diploma.
“People you think you’d never talk to — talk to them, because you never know what they’re like,” said Hannah Petersen, a senior. “I think that’s the most important thing because it helps you get through high school, and it makes it fun.”
The state’s goal graduation rate is 90 percent.
Data from the last school year shows graduation rates in Districts 91 and 93 in Idaho Falls rank above 92 percent, while District 321 in Madison County is at 98 percent.
The Pocatello/Chubbuck District 25 hit 95 percent.
