A B C D E F G H I J K L

The Board of Education for the St. Charles R-VI School District establishes the following graduation policy and instructs the administration to develop all necessary procedures for proper implementation.

Requirements

A student must meet the following requirements in order to graduate from the St. Charles R-VI School District, unless the stated exceptions apply. The student must:

1.         Beginning with the class of 2016, students must earn a total of 28 credits in grades nine and above, including credits required by the State Board of Education and St. Charles School District as listed below.

For graduating classes prior to 2016, students must earn a total of 26 credits in grades nine and above, including credits required by the State Board of Education and St. Charles School District as listed below:

2.         Pass proficiency exams concerning American History, American Institutions, and the Missouri and U.S. Constitutions.

3.         Successfully complete a course of instruction of at least one semester in length on the institutions, branches and functions of the government of the state of Missouri, including local governments, the U.S. government and the electoral process.

4.         Have earned credit in the St. Charles R-VI School District's educational program between the ninth and twelfth grades.

*          All eighth grade students and new enrollees (9-12) are required to complete a Career Pathways: Four-Year Plan of Study for high school. It is required that all students plan for a minimum of two units of career-specific courses.

Exceptions

1.         Graduation requirements and grading scales for a student with a disability receiving special education services pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) may be determined according to the student's individualized education program (IEP).

2.         Students transferring from another accredited Missouri school as a junior or senior who cannot reasonably complete the district's requirements may be permitted to graduate based on the successful completion of a program of studies that would have met the graduation requirements at the school formerly attended, including the requirements of (2) and (3) above.

3.         The district will waive the requirement to pass proficiency exams concerning American History, American Institutions, and the Missouri and U.S. Constitutions for students who transfer from another state if they can document the successful completion of a course of instruction in the institutions, branches and functions of state government, including local governments, the U.S. government and the electoral process. Such instruction must have been completed in grades nine through twelve.

4.         Students who transfer from another state or country or an unaccredited private, public or home school and who are placed in the ninth grade will be required to meet all established graduation requirements. If such a student is placed in the tenth grade or higher, the district will work with the student and the parents/guardians to develop a program of studies that will result in graduation if successfully completed.

5.         Graduation requirements for foster care students will be modified or waived in accordance with law and Board policy.

Earning Credit

1.         The superintendent or designee is directed to assign credit values for courses offered by or through the school district and to develop formulas and procedures for awarding credit to transfer students who transfer from a district that uses a different standard for awarding credit.

2.         The St. Charles R-VI School District recognizes units of credit obtained through accredited schools and school districts, including credits earned through correspondence courses or courses delivered primarily through electronic media, such as satellite video, cable video or computer-driven or online courses. For the purposes of this policy, an "accredited school" is the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program (MoVIP); a private agency where students with disabilities are placed by a public school; or any school or school district accredited by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS) or the University of Missouri Committee on Accredited Schools Non-Public (CAS). If a school or school district is located in another state or country, that school or school district must be accredited by that state's or country's department of education, NCA, ISACS or the equivalent agencies. Except for courses earned through MoVIP, no more than two units of credit earned in correspondence courses may be applied toward graduation from a St. Charles School District high school.

3.         Credit will not be granted for departmental placement test results. Departmental placement test results may be used to allow a student to select a more advanced course in the subject area. These placement test results shall be noted on the student's permanent record when applicable. The concerned high school department shall, with the approval of the principal, select the evaluation instrument and determine the standard of achievement.

4.         Students may earn advanced-standing credit by successfully completing high-school level courses prior to entering the ninth grade. This advanced-standing credit may be counted toward meeting the subject-area requirements for graduation and for meeting the district requirements, but it will not be counted toward the minimum number of credits required by the State Board.

5.         The district reserves the option to waive one unit of academic credit per year in a technical core area or technical elective, whichever is most appropriate, for students who successfully complete an eligible three-unit career/technical program. Students must request this credit waiver prior to enrolling in the career/technical program for which the waiver is sought.

6.         Students may earn credit by other means as approved by the Board and in accordance with law.

Diplomas

Students will be awarded either a diploma or certificate of attendance in accordance with this policy and as permitted by law.

A student in the household of an active duty member of the military, including some veterans who are deceased or injured as defined by law, who transfers to the St. Charles R-VI School District from another state at the beginning of or during his or her senior year who will not meet the graduation requirements of the district by the end of the senior year will receive a diploma from the sending school district if the student is able to meet the graduation requirements of the sending district. Representatives from the St. Charles R-VI School District and the sending district will work with the student to facilitate this alternative. If the sending district refuses to cooperate, the St. Charles R-VI School District will use best efforts to allow the student to graduate by the end of the senior year.

Foster care students will be awarded a diploma in accordance with law and Board policy.

Students who complete the district's graduation requirements while under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court will be awarded a high school diploma even if the student completes the requirements in a different school district.

Requirements for a Certificate of Achievement

1.         A Certificate of Achievement may be awarded in lieu of a diploma provided that a multidisciplinary IEP team has recommended that the student follow such a procedure, that a valid diagnosis confirms the student's inability to attain the established minimum levels of achievement, and that the student and his or her parents or guardians understand and approve the procedure. Certificates of Achievement will be issued to the students whose IEP so indicates.

2.         Certificates of Achievement will be issued to former St. Charles high school students who satisfactorily complete the GED (General Education Development) tests administered by a recognized state agency. Former students will be those who have completed no less than one full semester of residency in a district high school. The individuals involved must request such certificates; they are required to present the report of their test results for eligibility verification for their certificate and for their high school transcript. Any expenses incurred above the annual cost of the certificates ordered for the current year will be prepaid by the individual involved.

Graduation and Classification Practices for Grades 9, 10, 11 and 12

Classifications are determined in August preceding the current school year and are not changed after the school year begins. Students receiving the appropriate number of credits as indicated below will be classified at the next highest grade level at the beginning of the following school year:

Units of Credit

* * * * * * *

Adopted:         10/14/1993

Revised           09/10/1998; 10/12/2000; 01/10/2002; 05/12/2005; 11/09/2006; 03/13/2008; 06/11/2009; 03/11/2010; 08/12/2010; 12/08/2011; 04/11/2013

MSIP Refs:     6.3

Cross Refs:     JECC, Assignment of Students to Grade Levels/Classes

Legal Refs:     §§ 160.1990, .2000, 161.670, 167.019, 170.011, 171.171, RSMo.

5 C.S.R. 20-100.230

5 C.S.R. 20-500.330

St. Charles School District, St. Charles, Missouri

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