High school dropouts are more
likely to be unemployed than high school graduates and, even when employed,
are more likely to earn less than those receiving diplomas. Also, dropouts
are more likely to live in poverty, become teen parents, receive government
assistance and become involved in crime than are students who complete high
school.
Pinellas County’s high school dropout rates, which have
undergone wide swings over the years, declined to a new low of 2.1% in
2007-2008, 0.5 points below Florida.
Averaging dropout rates helps smooth out some of the
year-to-year volatility and facilitates comparisons. A comparison of
Pinellas County’s average dropout rate over the three-year 2005/06–2007/08
period to that of the state and other counties of similar size is shown
below.
