The Manhattan Institute says 85 percent of students graduated high school in 2002, the latest figures available. That puts Wisconsin third in the nation.

The report also shows there's plenty of room for improving the graduation rate among minority students, although the rate has gotten better.

The graduation rate for black students improved from 40 percent in 1997 to 50 percent in 2002 for a rank of 29th among 32 states with available data.

The rate for Hispanics is 58 percent, sixth best among 18 states that have comparable data. The graduation rate for white students is up to 91 percent from 85 percent, the highest among 38 states.