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Senior Recognition Program

Three-Tiered Senior Recognition Program to be Implemented for Class of 2011

In September 2009, the Board of Education commissioned a 28-member committee to review the procedure for the academic ranking of seniors (referred to as "class rank") and the practice of recognizing only the top-ranked students (the valedictorian and salutatorian of the class) at graduation time.  The committee was comprised of students, parents, teachers, administrators, and Central Office staff.

Based on four months of research and investigation, the committee recommended to the Board of Education in January 2010 that the class rank procedure and corresponding valedictorian and salutatorian recognition be eliminated and replaced by a three-tiered senior recognition program.  By surveying 32 colleges and universities, the committee found that the current class rank system had no bearing on college admissions and scholarships.  The committee also believes that the new three-tiered system will continue to encourage rigor, while recognizing a larger number of high-achieving students.

After accepting public comment for a month, the Board of Education unanimously voted to eliminate class rankings and to approve the three-tiered senior recognition program at the February 16, 2010, Board of Education Meeting.

Below are approved criteria for the new three-tiered recognition program:

• The program will be implemented with the graduating class of 2011;
• The three tiers will be designated by the Latinate titles of Summa Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude, and Cum Laude;
• The courses calculated in the student's weighted Grade Point Average (GPA) for the three-tiered program will be the same courses used to calculate the current class-rank weighted GPA;
• The three-tiered weighted GPA cutoffs will be 5.05 and above for Summa Cum Laude; 4.90 to 5.04 for Magna Cum Laude; and 4.80 to 4.89 for Cum Laude;
• GPA calculations will be carried out to three decimals (or thousandths) and rounded to two decimals (or hundredths).  For example, a GPA of 5.045 will be rounded to 5.05; and
• If a graduating senior has achieved a weighted GPA that falls within an honor tier, the senior's transcript (the final official academic record) will indicate the Latinate title earned. (The numerical class rank will no longer be available or included on the transcript.)

Criteria for the new three-tiered senior recognition program is also included in the 2010-2011 Student Handbook and the 2011-2012 Course Description Catalog.

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