Missouri and the Nation Proportion of Missouri and U.S. 2000 Population, Age 25 and Older, Not Having Graduated from High School Table 1 shows that 18.7 percent of Missouri's 2000 adult population had not graduated from high school. That represented a significant improvement from 1990 when 26.1 percent of adults had not completed high school (Table 2). As a result of that decline Missouri improved from a rank of 37th among the states in 1990 to a rank of 30th in 2000. That rank means that in 2000 there were 21 states in which the proportion of adults who had not graduated from high school was greater than in Missouri. In 2000 the proportion of Missourians not having graduated from high school (18.7 percent) was slightly less than the national 19.6 percent. Map 1 click map for larger version As shown on Map 1, Missouri ranks in the middle range of states, e.g. in the category ranging from 15.1 percent to 20.0 percent. There were 15 states in which fewer than 15 percent of the 2000 adult population had failed to graduate from high school. As shown on the map, the 12 states with a low percentage of high school non-completers were concentrated in the regions from the upper Midwest through the Plains and Mountain states to the West Coast and Alaska. The three additional states in this low non-completion category are in upper New England. The 17 states having the highest proportion of adults not having graduated from high school (from 20.0 to 27.1 percent) are concentrated in the South ranging from New Mexico through the Southeast and Appalachia to West Virginia. Aside from that contiguous group of 14 states, others with a low high school completion rate are California, New York and Rhode Island. The 19 states in which between 15 and 20 percent of the adult population had not graduated from high school include states from each of the major regions. Missouri and Its Neighbors Comparing Missouri's percentage of adults not having completed high school with its neighboring states shows that four of Missouri's neighbors (Oklahoma, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas) have a higher percentage of adults not having graduated from high school. Compared with Missouri's national rank of 30th, Oklahoma ranked 33rd, Tennessee ranked 43rd Arkansas ranked 45th, and Kentucky ranked 49th. Missouri's other four neighbors ranked higher than Missouri in adult high school completion led by Nebraska with a national rank of 8th, followed by Iowa which ranked 10th, Kansas which ranked 11th and Illinois which ranked 29th - one place above Missouri. Detailed Tables Persons 25 Years or Older Without a High School Diploma, 2000, for All U.S. States HTML PDF Persons 25 Years or Older Without a High School Diploma, 1990, for All U.S. States HTML PDF Percent Persons 25 Years or Older Without High School Diploma, 2000, for All U.S. States HTML PDF Percent Persons 25 Years or Older Without High School Diploma, 1990, for All U.S. States HTML PDF Change in Persons 25 Years or Older Without a High School Diploma, 1990-2000, for All U.S. States    HTML PDF Percent Change in Persons 25 Years or Older Without a High School Diploma, 1990-2000, for All U.S. States    HTML PDF