Battle Ground schools graduation rate climbs to highest level in a decade

Battle Ground Public Schools’ class of 2024 had the highest graduation rate in 10 years. The district is setting its sights even higher for this year’s cohort.

In 2024, the district’s graduation rate was 81.8 percent, just 1 percentage point below the state average and up from 75.5 percent in 2014. District officials say that improvement is thanks to efforts to offer students alternative paths to graduation.

“One thing that we do have now that we didn’t 10 years ago is many more students who are attending our alternative schools than there were in the past,” said Travis Drake, director of instructional leadership for middle, high and alternative learning schools. “So now that we have more alternatives, students are able to find a model that works for them.”

As the third largest Clark County school district, Battle Ground fell slightly behind graduation rates in Vancouver (83.6 percent) and Evergreen (91.7 percent) in 2024, according to the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Two of the Battle Ground school district’s five alternative high schools — Character Academics for the Marketplace, or CAM, Academy and Battle Ground Virtual Academy — exceeded the state’s average graduation rate. So did the district’s two traditional high schools, Battle Ground and Prairie.

At CAM Academy, a rigorous instruction program for third through 12th grades, students attend most days on campus and one at home. River HomeLink is another option for students to learn in programs in classrooms and at home through parent-partnered support.

Summit View High School is available for students ages 14 to 21 who need individualized learning because they work, take care of children or have other needs. Battle Ground Virtual Academy offers students a fully online option.

“I think our teachers deserve a tremendous amount of credit. One, for making it through COVID, and then two, supporting the different types of students that have been created because of COVID in that experience,” Drake said.

Battle Ground High School counselor Myke Pace said learning, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, has become more relevant to students’ interests and future goals.

“I know being in a high school and talking to juniors and seniors during COVID, a lot of their goals changed from maybe wanting to go to college, to not wanting to go to college and wanting to go to work or wanting to join the military,” he said. “There became a focus more on (personalizing) this to what students want to do because they were struggling to get engaged after being at home for so long.”

Battle Ground also offers an opportunity for students to redo some or all of a course they failed so they can earn credit. Schools designate time for those who need individualized help with any of their classes, a district news release states.

A newer program, Center for High School Success, allows ninth-graders to earn six credits by the end of the year, putting them on track to graduate.

“At least in our school, it’s not just throwing kids on a computer and having them do a credit recovery class,” Pace said. “We have teachers who are monitoring them, and we have (teacher) aides in there helping them get through the class so they’re actually not just jumping through the hoops, they’re learning something along the way.”

Pace said teachers also provide students an opportunity to recover a unit if they fail a course to prove they’ve learned the content for the teacher to change their grade.

“I think a big part of having those programs is just those students having hope and feeling like they can get it done,” he said. “Because if they feel like they can’t do it, they are just going to quit, or they’re going to drop out.”