By Angela Hatton
Frankfort, Ky – Kentucky's dropout rate ticked up slightly in 2010, despite a statewide push for dropout prevention. The Kentucky Department of Education's latest Nonacademic Data report shows 3.19 percent of students dropped out in 2010, up three tenths of a percent from 2009. However, dropout rates in most western Kentucky counties decreased, with the biggest drop in Marshall County, falling one and a half percent to 1.1. Kentucky Department of Education spokesperson Lisa Gross says there's no pattern to the numbers.
"Some of our higher drop out rates are spread out all over the state. And some of the lower dropout rates are spread all over the state. So I'm not sure you can point to a particular region."
Graves County reported western Kentucky's lowest dropout rate in 2010 at eight tenths of a percent. Paducah Independent schools had the highest at 2.8 percent. First Lady Jane Beshear has led the effort to keep kids in school, including advocating an increase in the dropout age from 16 to 18.