By Mark Tallman

Nearly 10 years ago, the Kansas State Board of Education adopted its Kansans Can vision, with goals of increasing high school graduation and postsecondary attainment.

There is evidence that the plan is succeeding. Data from the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) and Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) show record numbers of high school graduates and postsecondary credentials earned last year. Those goals are important because a long-term trend of increased educational requirements in the workforce is expected to continue, and because most wage growth is going to those with higher educational skills.

High School Completion

In 2024, Kansas set a new record graduation rate of 89.5 percent for all schools, up from 80.6 percent in 2010 when the current graduation rate formula was adopted. 

Chart 1: Kansas graduation rate and total number of graduates, public and private schools.

Information available at KSDE Data Central.

Postsecondary Certificates and Degrees

The increase in the graduation rate shows a higher percentage of students are completing high school than ever before. Data from KBOR show that more students are also going to earn postsecondary credentials after recovering from a drop during the pandemic.

A record 45,276 credentials were awarded in 2024 by state universities, Washburn University, community colleges, and technical colleges, an increase of 27 percent since 2009. That number includes 6,122 short-term technical certificates, 5,890 one-year or two-year certificates, 10,828 associate degrees, 14,077 bachelor’s degrees, 6,794 master’s degrees, and 1,565 doctoral degrees.

Chart 2. Total credentials awarded at KBOR institutions.

The biggest increase has come from students most recently out of the K-12 system. The age group under 18 to 24 increased from 20,082 credentials in 2019 to 29,808 in 2024, an increase of 48 percent. Credentials awarded only to those under 18 through 19, most of whom are still in high school, went up even faster, from 2,494 in 2009 to 7,225 in 2024, or nearly 200 percent.

Without the pandemic, results might have been even higher. Each group was increasing from 2009 to 2019 when the pandemic caused disruptions in education attainment. The number of credentials being awarded has recovered and exceeded 2019 levels for the first time in 2024.

The KBOR data include credentials earned by both state residents and non-residents. It does not include credentials earned by Kansas residents attending college in other states.

Information available at KBOR Kansas Higher Education Statistics.

Chart 3. Total credentials awarded at KBOR institutions by age.

Shift to Jobs Requiring More Education Continues

These trends in Kansas reflect a long-term national shift in the economy. According to a recent report from Center for Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University, the United States had around 100 million jobs in 1983. A high school diploma alone was enough to hold two-thirds of those jobs.

By 2021, the number of jobs had grown to 156 million, Jobs requiring a high school diploma or less dropped drastically while jobs requiring postsecondary education drastically increased. More than two-thirds of jobs now require more than a high school diploma.

According to researchers at the Georgetown Center, those trends will continue. By 2031, the number of jobs nationally is expected to be 171 million. By then over 70 percent of jobs will require more than a high school diploma. The percentage of jobs requiring four years of college or more will be 42 percent.

Chart 4. U.S. jobs by educational requirements.

According to the same report, Kansas will generally follow the national average. It projects Kansas will add about 86,000 net new jobs by 2031. Of those new jobs, 30 percent will require a high school diploma or less, 33 percent will require some college or certificate beyond high school up to an associate degree, and 37 percent will require a bachelor's or doctoral degree. Based on current educational levels of the Kansas population age 25 and older, Kansas will likely need to increase the number of credentials earned at each level.

Chart 5. Projected changes in Kansas job requirements by education.

In addition to offering graduates far more employment opportunities, earning more education credentials increases average income and reduces the chances of poverty, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. In 2023, Kansans who had not completed high school on average earned about $34,000 per year; those with a high school diploma only $37,000; some college or an associate degree $42,000; a bachelor's degree $61,000; and a doctoral or professional degree $71,000.

Chart 6. Kansas average earnings increase with levels of education attained.

How Schools are Increasing High School Graduation and Postsecondary Success

According to KSDE staff and Kansas districts with high graduation and post-secondary success rates, there are several factors that have led to the increases in earned credentials. 

Promoting postsecondary courses for students in high school

Allowing students to start college sooner increases the odds they will complete a program. 

Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, Kansas high school students can qualify for state-funded college tuition in approved technical courses offered by Kansas technical and community colleges.  The number of students participating in the Excel in CTE initiative grew from 3,475 in 2011 to 16,242 in 2024.

School districts and colleges have also promoted enrollment in non-CTE courses that can lead to academic degrees. The number of students earning college credit while in high school increased from 22,996 in 2013 to 36,318 in 2024. To facilitate more high school students taking postsecondary courses, school districts have worked to improve coordination, scheduling, and counseling with area colleges and worked to lower costs to students and families through lower tuition, district assistance, and other fundraising.

Improving Individual Career Planning

Along with the goals of higher graduation and postsecondary success, the Kansans Can initiative encouraged school districts to focus on Individual Plans of Study. A student’s IPS is developed cooperatively with the student and the student's counselor, teachers, and family members, based on the career interests identified by the student through a career interest survey or assessment. It includes courses and programs to help prepare the student for their career goals, including preparation for postsecondary programs and work-based learning experiences while in high school.

To support these efforts, school districts have increased the number of career counselors, added career technical education (CTE) program pathways in career fields, and expanded opportunities for internships, job shadowing, and project-based learning. Educators say students are more likely to stay in school and be more successful if they see a connection between high school courses and personal career interests. For example, high school students who complete CTE programs have higher graduation rates and higher performance on state assessments than overall high school students.

Teaching College and Career Competencies

Another Kansans Can focus has been on non-academic skills that parents, employers, and educators say are important. These include interpersonal and intrapersonal skills like resilience, self-regulation, goal setting, working with others, assertiveness, and conflict management. These traits have been variously called social and emotional skills, character skills, soft skills, workplace skills, citizenship skills, durable skills, and College and Career Competencies.

Educators say these skills help students be successful after leaving school but also support high school graduation and postsecondary success by helping students set goals, manage time, accept new challenges, and deal with adversity. To teach these skills schools have scheduled time and added materials, counselors, and training for classroom teachers. They have also increased opportunities that promote these skills like sports, activities, civic engagement, and community service.

Rapid response to student needs

Leaders in successful schools point to an important process for keeping students in school, on track to graduate, and preparing for post-secondary success. They pay close attention to when students are struggling with coursework or have behavioral issues and then quickly intervene with the student and family to address problems before students fall too far behind. Many have put in place formal teams to monitor students and provide fast assistance. Many have also worked to improve virtual programs and alternative schools to give students options but provide more accountability.

Nearly every school district has also worked to expand access to mental health service for students and often their families as well, responding to an increase in issues like depression and anxiety. Districts have increased special education staff and service as the number of students identified with disabilities continues to increase. There is some evidence that these programs are helping, as the Kansas youth suicide rate has been declining since 2018 after major efforts by state agencies and local schools.

Effective use of increased funding

School leaders have noted that many of these efforts to support graduation and postsecondary success were made possible by increased financial support. These included higher base state aid under the Gannon school finance plan, temporary federal pandemic relief aid for learning loss, targeted state programs like Excel in CTE, mental health grants, special education aid, and local support including private fundraising.