=+3.21 ● High school dropout rates (percentages) for the period 1997–1999 for the 50 states were given in The Chronicle of Higher Education (August 31, 2001) and are shown in the following table:

State Rate Alabama 10 Alaska 7 Arizona 17 Arkansas 12 California 9 Colorado 13 State Rate Connecticut 9 Delaware 11 Florida 12 Georgia 13 Hawaii 5 Idaho 10 Illinois 9 Indiana 6 Iowa 7 Kansas 7 Kentucky 11 Louisiana 11 Maine 7 Maryland 7 Massachusetts 6 Michigan 9 Minnesota 6 Mississippi 10 Missouri 9 Montana 8 Nebraska 8 Nevada 17 New Hampshire 7 New Jersey 6 New Mexico 13 New York 9 North Carolina 11 North Dakota 5 Ohio 8 Oklahoma 9 Oregon 13 Pennsylvania 7 Rhode Island 11 South Carolina 9 South Dakota 8 Tennessee 12 Texas 12 Utah 9 Vermont 6 Virginia 8 Washington 8 West Virginia 8 Wisconsin 5 Wyoming 9 Note that dropout rates range from a low of 5% to a high of 17%. In constructing a stem-and-leaf display for these