BODY { MARGIN: 10px } Polk County High Principal Aaron Greene and Polk County Schools Supt. Bill Miller were scheduled to attend the ceremony. Polk County was tied for the seventh highest graduation rate in the state at 82.1 percent. This is the second year that State Superintendent June Atkinson has held the special recognition ceremony to highlight the importance of high school graduation and the graduation success stories in North Carolina. &uot;North Carolina must redouble its efforts to keep students in school and on track for high school graduation,&uot; said State Superintendent Atkinson. &uot;A high school diploma is a basic accomplishment for anyone entering the workforce and an essential stepping stone to a community college or university. The schools and districts we have honored today show us that public schools can have high graduation rates, and when they do, students are the winners.&uot; The school districts&bsp;in the top 10 for graduation rates are listed below. The rates are for the students who were identified as being in the graduating class of 2009. Dare County (90.2 percent), Elkin City (88.2), Clay County (87.6), Chapel Hill-Carrbobo (86.7), Catawba County (83.8), Cateret County (82.5), Currituck County (82.1), Polk County (82.1), Mount Airy City (81.8), Orange County (81.4), Camden County (81.4), Pamlico County (81.4).