In Colorado, 81.9% of the class of 2020 graduated last spring, making for the highest four-year graduation rate since 2010 when the state changed its reporting system.

The class of 2020 had nearly 1,000 more graduates than the year before, with 55,220 graduates, according to the data released by the Colorado Department of Education on Tuesday.

“We know how tough the spring was for our seniors, with many not able to attend their proms or graduation ceremonies due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Colorado Education Commissioner Katy Anthes.

“History will look back at this generation of children and marvel at their perseverance and dedication.”

The state’s four-year graduation rate has increased by 9.5 percentage points since 2010. Five-, six- and seven-year graduation rates have also improved steadily over the decade.

Colorado’s students of color are making the largest change, closing the racial graduation gap. In 2020, the four-year graduation rate for students of color was 77.1%, an increase of 1.6 percentage points from 2019.

Black students had the largest increase with 2.2 percentage points, followed by Native American students and students of multiple races with 1.7. Hispanic and Asian students had an increase of 1.4 and 1.3 respectively, while white students had a 0.1 increase.

The only racial or ethnic group whose graduation rate decreased in 2020 was Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students, with a decrease of 3.2 percentage points.

Asian students had the highest four-year graduation rate in 2020 with 91.2%, followed by white students, multi-race students, Black students, Hispanic students, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students and lastly Native American students with 66.6%.

Colorado’s female students in 2020 had an 85.4% four-year graduation rate (a 0.6 percentage point increase from 2019) and male students had a 78.5% rate (a 0.9 point increase).

The class of 2020 also saw increased four-year graduation rates among students with disabilities, homeless students, low-income students, limited English students and migrant students.

In addition, the class of 2020 had the lowest statewide dropout rate in 10 years at 1.8% — a 0.2 percentage point decrease and 716 fewer students from 2019.

Though the COVID-19 pandemic began during the 2019-20 school year, officials expect the impact on graduation and drop out rates to be much more significant for the class of 2021.

The extent of its impact will not be known until data is collected after the school year ends.