The U.S Department of Education announced this week that the high school graduation rate reached another record high of 82 percent in the 2013-14 year, according to the Huffington Post.

The announcement follows October’s release of preliminary data by the Education Department that shows a decreasing gap in graduation rates between black and white and black and Hispanic students. The data shows that graduation rates climbed for the country as a whole.

The past four consecutive years have shown a continual increase in the U.S. high school graduate rate after the states and districts began using a new metric to measure this number in 2010.

The achievement gap in graduation rates between black and white and white and Hispanic students continues to steadily diminish. The 2010-11 school year there was a 17-point percentage gap in graduation rates between black and white students. The number fell to 14.8 by 2013-14.

New data shows that graduation rates have risen for the past few years for subgroups like low-income students, English language learners and students with disabilities.

Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education said, “America’s students have achieved another record milestone by improving gradation rates for a fourth year. The hard work of teachers, administrators, students, and their families has made the gains possible and as a result many more students will have a better chance of going to college, getting a good job, owning their own home, and supporting a family. We can take pride as a nation in knowing that we’re seeing promising gains, including for students of color.”

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