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Texas Business Group Director Questions Accuracy Of Graduation Rates

The head of a key Texas business group says he doesn't trust the high school dropout and graduation rates provided by state officials.

Texas Association of Business president Bill Hammond told The Dallas Morning News that public schools can manipulate the statistics they give to the Texas Education Agency, including the rates of students who opt for home-schooling.

But TEA spokeswoman Debbie Ratcliffe said the state monitors the numbers it receives and requires documentation to avoid stat fixing.

TEA reported an 88 percent graduation rate for the 2014 graduating class.

The Morning News reports that Texas is tied with Iowa for the second-highest graduation rate in the country, something that former Gov. Rick Perry has bragged about during his presidential campaign.

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Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.