GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS | Administrative Guideline Manual

5460 - GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

In order for a student to qualify for a diploma in this District, s/he must have satisfactorily completed the following courses and earned at least twenty-three (23) credits.

Graduation must be earned by passing all mandated subjects, a major sequence, and earning total units required for the specific diploma sought. Credit toward graduation shall be granted for any course that a student successfully completes outside of school hours at an accredited postsecondary institution whether or not the course was paid for by the District or by the parents or student. In addition, students in graduating classes before 2018 must attain the applicable score on the tests required by the State Board of Education for graduation in reading, writing, mathematics, science and social studies. Each student must demonstrate, unless exempted, the required level of skill in reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies at the end of the tenth grade.

As an alternative to the requirement that a student in a graduating class before 2018 having to attain the applicable scores on the Ohio Graduation Tests ("OGT") in order to be eligible to graduate, a student may meet the OGT testing requirements if s/he satisfies all of the following conditions:

passes four (4) out of five (5) OGT tests and has missed passing the fifth test by ten (10) points or less
has a ninety-seven percent (97%) school attendance rate in each of the last four (4) school years, excluding any excused absences
has not been expelled from school in any of the last four (4) school years
has a grade point average of at least 2.5 out of 4.0 in the subject area of the test not yet passed
has completed the high school curriculum requirement in the subject are area of the test not yet passed
has participated in any intervention programs provided by the District in the subject area and has a ninety-seven percent (97%) attendance rate, excluding any excused absences, in any of those programs provided at times beyond the normal school day, school week, or school year or has received comparable intervention services from another source; and
holds a letter recommending graduation from each of the student's high school teachers in the subject area not yet passed and from the high school director

Students in special education shall receive a diploma if certified they have properly completed the requirements of their IEP, and unless exempted, they take the tests required by the State Board of Education for graduation, with or without accommodations. Students should not be exempted from taking the prescribed tests unless no accommodation can be made to enable the student to take the test. They shall participate in all graduation activities.

Diploma - The requirements for graduation are based on grades nine (9) through twelve (12) listed below. However, no student shall be required to remain in school for any specific number of semesters or other terms if the student completes the required curriculum early.

For Graduating Classes of 2014 and Beyond:

Each student must earn at least twenty-three (23) credits in order to graduate and receive a diploma. The distribution of such credits is to be as follows:

English Language Arts 4

Health 1/2

Physical Education 1/2

Mathematics 4 (including 1 unit of Algebra II or the equivalenton a
Student Success Plan may be exempted from taking Algebra II)

Science                                         3 (including 1 in life science, 1 in Physical science, and 1
                                                       unit advanced study in one or more of the following
                                                        Sciences: chemistry, physics, or other physical science;
                                                        advanced biology or other life Science; astronomy, physical
                                                        geology, or other earth or Space science)

Social Studies 3 (1 in World Studies, 1 in US Studies, 1 in American Government)

Five (8) electives                              (including 1 whole unit or any combination of foreign
                                                        Language, fine arts, business, career-technical education,
                                                       family and consumer sciences, technology,
                                                        agricultural education or English language arts,
                                                       mathematics, science or social studies courses not
                                                        otherwise required.

Economics and Financial All students must receive instruction in economics and
Literacy financial literacy during grades 9-12.

Fine Arts                                            All students must complete at least two (2) semesters of fine
                                                         arts taken any time in grades 7-12. Students
                                                         following a career-technical pathway are exempted from
                                                         the fine arts requirement.

Students can earn from 1-5 points for each exam, based on their performance.

5 = Advanced

4 = Accelerated

3 = Proficient

2 = Basic

1 = Limited

Students studying Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), or taking dual enrollment courses in physical science, American history, or American government may take assessments aligned to those courses in lieu of end-of-course exams to avoid double testing.

Unless otherwise exempted, students must accumulate a minimum of eighteen (18) points from scores on their end-of-course exams to become eligible for a diploma.

Students who score below proficient on an exam may retake it after receiving extra help on the course content. Students who score proficient or higher on an end-of-course exam may retake the exam only if, once they take all exams, they have not met the minimum number of graduation points needed to graduate. In such a case, a student may retake any exam after receiving help on the course content. These same provisions shall apply to substitute exams, which may be used interchangeably with approved tests.

Assessment Options

Students who do not earn the required number of graduation points can become eligible for a diploma if they earn a remediation-free score on a national college admission test. This assessment will be given to students free-of-charge in the Fall of the 11th grade year starting with the graduating class of 2018.

Students may also qualify for graduation by earning an approved industry-recognized credential and achieving a workforce-readiness score on a related job skills assessment.

Other

Credit may be earned at an accredited postsecondary institution.

One (1) unit is a minimum of 120 hours of course instruction, except that for a laboratory course, it is a minimum of 150 hours of course instruction.

One-half (1/2) unit is a minimum of sixty (60) hours of course instruction, except that for physical education courses, it is a minimum of 120 hours of course instruction.

Students below the ninth grade level may take high school courses for advanced credit toward graduation. In order to receive such credit, the course must be taught by a person certified/licensed to teach in high school and the course must be designated by the Board as meeting the high school curriculum requirements.

Any person, residing in the District, who has completed the academic requirements in any high school but has not passed all the tests required by the State Board of Education for graduation is to be awarded a diploma from this District if s/he retakes and passes any unpassed tests at the high school during the designated testing days, unless excused from the tests as provided in law. The person is not required to meet the requirements established by this District.