FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — College graduation rates are continuing to climb in Kentucky, although undergraduate enrollment has fallen, the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education said in a report.
Graduation rates increased 1.8 percentage points at public universities and 4.1 points in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, the 2022 Progress Report said. The report provides information about public higher education performance for the 2020-21 school year.
Underrepresented minority students' graduation rates at public universities rose 4.3 percentage points, the report said. Underrepresented minority students continue to outpace progress overall, narrowing performance disparities, the council said.
Graduation rates show the percentage of first-time, full-time students entering in the fall semester who graduate with an associate's degree or credential within three years of entry or a bachelor's degree within six years, the council said.
“This report provides a snapshot of progress on our college and universities’ performance targets toward the state goal for 60% of working-age Kentuckians to have a postsecondary credential by the year 2030,” council President Aaron Thompson said. “Increasing the education and skill levels of our workforce is a prerequisite to overcoming systemic poverty, low rates of workforce participation and persistent inequities along racial, ethnic and gender lines.”
