Fort Wayne Community Schools’ high school graduation rate has increased for the fourth consecutive year, beating the state average in 2011, according to district officials.

For the FWCS class of 2011, the graduation rate was 88.1 percent, higher than the state average of 85.7 percent, officials announced Monday. In 2010, the FWCS graduation rate was 85.5 percent.

FWCS officials attributed the results partially to the FWCS’ freshman initiative, which began when the students from the class of 2011 were freshmen.

The program groups students together for their core classes and pairs them with a group of teachers. The arrangement, officials say, allows students to build strong relationships with one another and their teachers and provides an opportunity for interdisciplinary lessons.

The class of 2011 was also the first class automatically put on a track to earn the state’s more rigorous Core 40 diploma, officials said.

“We have made significant investments in our high schools over the last several years, particularly in ensuring that our students are taking rigorous courses and making the connection between what they learn in the classroom and what they will do with their lives after high school,” Superintendent Dr. Wendy Robinson said in a prepared statement. “We continue to strive to ensure that we educate all students to high standards so that they not only graduate from high school, but that they graduate ready to be successful in their next stage in life.”

Northrop and Snider high schools had the highest graduation rates in the district, at 95.2 percent and 91.9 percent, respectively.

Northrop had the largest graduation rate increases with a gain of nearly 7 percentage points.

Graduation percentage rates

High school graduation rates for Fort Wayne Community Schools high schools:

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