Chattooga County Schools has reached a 90.2% graduation rate for the Class of 2026, putting the local school system above Georgia’s statewide average.

The new graduation figures were released this week as Georgia recorded a statewide graduation rate of 88.5%, the highest since the state began using the federally required adjusted-cohort calculation in 2011.

Chattooga County’s 90.2% rate is 1.7 percentage points higher than the state average.

The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students who enter ninth grade as part of a graduating class and earn a regular high school diploma or state-defined alternate diploma within four years. The cohort is adjusted as students transfer into or out of a school system.

Statewide, 147 Georgia school districts recorded graduation rates of 90% or higher, including Chattooga County. Sixty-nine districts posted rates of at least 95%.

Georgia’s statewide rate increased from 87.2% in 2025 to 88.5% in 2026. The state graduation rate has now increased more than 21 percentage points since 2011, when it stood at 67.4%.

Chattooga County Schools Superintendent Dr. Michelle Helie said the local graduation rate increased to 90.2% this year, placing the system above the state average.

The results mean that both public school systems serving Chattooga County exceeded the statewide graduation rate for the Class of 2026.