More High School Graduates Prepared for College, According to Commission for Higher Education

Posted on March 27, 2017
Author Michael Gallenberger, WKVI

More Indiana high school graduates are prepared for college, but the Indiana Commission for Higher Education says there’s still more work to be done. State officials say in spite of recent improvements, nearly a fifth of recent high school graduates are still not ready to take college courses that count toward their degrees. That’s particularly true in the area of math.

Indiana’s 2017 College Readiness Report analyzes data on students who graduated from high school in 2015 and entered college the following fall. The report indicates that 65 percent of Hoosier high school graduates went directly to college, which is slightly below the national average. Seventy-four percent of Indiana students go to public colleges, 13 percent attend private colleges, and 12 percent go to out-of-state schools.

Those who graduated from high school with an Honors diploma were generally more prepared for college, with only three percent needing remediation. That compares to half of those with a General Diploma and one-fifth of students who earned a Core 40 Diploma.

However, state education officials say the overall trend is positive. They credit changes in the Ivy Tech system that tie math remediation more closely into degree coursework. Instead of having students take a series of standalone remedial courses, they’re now being placed directly into college-level courses with “additional wraparound support.” Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers says the changes are designed to make math “a gateway rather than a barrier to student success” and that they’ve been “tremendously effective.”

More information, including data for each county, school district, and high school in the state, can be found on the Indiana Commission for Higher Education website.