Education Week and the Editorial Projects in Education (EPE) Research Center have released "Diplomas Count 2009". It places the national graduation rate at 69.2 percent for the class of 2006. "You see a lot of debate over whether we can we raise graduation requirements and graduation rates at the same time," says Michael Cohen, president of Achieve. "Every time states have raised the bar there's been a temporary slight uptick in the dropout rate, but not a huge one, and it typically falls back down...What we want are for more students to earn diplomas that are meaningful, that signify preparation for success after high school," Mr. Cohen says. Read the article...