Last Updated: September 30, 2013
This article appeared in the September 2013 Rural Policy Matters.
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Question: True or False: In recent years the gap in high school graduation rates between metro and nonmetro counties has been growing.
Answer: False. The gap in high school graduation rates has been closing as a higher percentage of adults (over age 25) in nonmetro counties have earned a high school diploma. In 2009, 81.7% of adults in nonmetro counties have earned a high school diploma compared to 85.2% in metro counties.
Source: Rural America At A Glance, 2011 Edition, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. www.ers.usda.gov/publications/eib-economic-information-bulletin/eib85.aspx
Read more from the September 2013 Rural Policy Matters.