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A  new report analyzed graduation rates for black males nationwide and found that LA Unified ranks well below the national average. The district graduation rate for black males was 41 percent in the 2011-12 school year, compared with 59 percent nationwide, according to the Schott Foundation.

The report, BLACK LIVES MATTER: The Schott 50 State Report on Public Education and Black Males, analyzed data from 48 states and the District of Columbia, as well as from 56 districts in the country that have the largest enrollment of black male students. It found that black males had the lowest graduation rates in 35 states of any racial group, and the gap between black and white males is more than 25 percentage points in some states.

At LA Unified, which had the sixth-largest enrollment of black males in the country, the gap between white male and black male graduation was 23 percent.

Among the school districts analyzed, LA Unified’s graduation rate for black males was ranked 30th, tied with several others. Montgomery County (MD) had the best, with 74 percent, while Rochester (NY) was the lowest at 9 percent.

Graduation rates for black males and other students of color is something LA Unified has addressed in a public and aggressive manner the last few years, in particular with its new focus on restorative justice, which seeks to lower suspension and expulsion rates after studies found that students of color were being disproportionately expelled and suspended, reducing graduation rates.

It is also important to note that overall graduation rates have increased in LA Unified since 2011-12, which was the year the report analyzed.