Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) graduation rates for the class of 2024 increased about 2 percentage points to nearly 92% compared to last year, with notable progress in multilingual learners’ rates, while other groups of students, such as those with disabilities, saw declines, according to data from the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE).
“While we celebrate the significant strides made, especially for our multilingual learners and Hispanic/Latino students, the declines we’ve seen in certain groups are a stark reminder that our work is far from over,” MCPS Superintendent Thomas Taylor said in a Tuesday statement from the school district.
According to MSDE data, the school district’s 2024 four-year cohort graduation rates of about 91.9% increased compared to last year’s four-year graduation rates of about 89.6%. The graduation rates for multilingual students increased from about 61.2% in 2023 to 73.1% in 2024. Graduation rates for Hispanic/Latino students also increased from roughly 79.1% to 85.7%.
Students who qualify for free and reduced meal services (FARMS) also had increased rates from around 86.8% to 91.3%. Black students saw a slight increase from 2023 to 2024, from 91.1% to 91.6%
This year Maryland reached its highest graduation rates since 2017 at 87.6%, according to a statement from the MSDE. Similarly to MCPS, the state saw its biggest increases for Hispanic and multilingual learners.
While some groups increased, others experienced decreases. Students with disabilities’ graduation rates decreased from about 77.8% in 2023, to 74.9% in 2024. Students who identify as two or more races decreased by 2.2 percentage points for graduation rates of 93.5% in 2024, and white students decreased 0.6 percentage points although the group had graduation rates above 95%, according to MCPS.
While multilingual learners, Hispanic/Latino and Black students made increases, those groups graduation rates are below white and Asian students’ graduation rates, who had above 95% graduation rates in 2023 and 2024.
Taylor said in the statement that MCPS is “committed to ensuring that every student, regardless of their background or challenges, has the opportunity to thrive and graduate prepared for a future of success.”
According to MCPS, Watkins Mill High School in Gaithersburg made the biggest increase from about 81% in 2023 to about 92% in 2024.
In the MCPS statement, the district said Taylor’s $3.65 billion budget that was tentatively approved by the school board Feb. 4 aims to provide extra support for schools with special education and multilingual learner programs.
The budget, which represents a nearly 9% increase over current spending, includes the addition of 688 special education positions and $5.47 million for an equity addition to the school material funding formula.
The tentatively approved proposal is now with County Executive Marc Elrich (D), who is reviewing it while preparing his proposed fiscal year 2026 county operating budget. Elrich is expected to release the budget, including MCPS spending, in mid-March. Fiscal year 2026 begins July 1.
