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New criteria for HS diploma proposed

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By Sara Foss

Reprinted with permission

The state is mulling new requirements to earn a high school diploma. Courtesy of Pexels

ALBANY—New York students would no longer be required to pass a certain number of state Regents’ exams to earn a high school diploma under a proposal presented at the June meeting of the Board of Regents.

Instead, the state would create many ways for students to demonstrate proficiency and knowledge in fulfillment of diploma requirements.

WHAT WILL CHANGE

Under the current requirements, school districts could offer three types of diplomas: Regents, local or advanced designation. Local school boards can add local requirements and withhold diplomas from students who do not meet those requirements. The [current] state criteria require course credits in such topics as English, math and health, along with passing four or five Regents exams.

Under the proposed model, there would only be one diploma with advanced designation becoming a seal or endorsement. A district must confer diplomas to students who meet state requirements and enact a new evidence-based system with multiple ways to demonstrate fulfilling the state’s portrait of a graduate.

These proposed changes represent the fruits of a multi-year effort to reimagine how students earn a high school diploma. Key concepts were unveiled in late 2023 as part of a package of 12 recommendations from the state’s 64-member Blue Ribbon Commission on Graduate Measures.

In November, a full implementation plan will be presented to the Board of Regents for approval and adoption. Included will be a strategy for education principals, guidance counselors and other key players about the changes. The Regents have expressed support for the proposed changes but also indicated their desire for the educational component.

One challenge to implementation will be ensuring that all districts are ready and able to make the changes laid out by the state’s proposals. The State Education Department plans to launch a pilot program with 18 districts that “typically start behind and struggle to keep up,” said Jason Harmon, deputy commissioner of the department’s P-12 Operational Support.

One barrier to the changes is a lack of financial resources.

“We have to acknowledge that not all of our districts, not all of our communities, are going to start this transformation in the same place,” Harmon said.

Education Commissioner Betty Rosa also weighed in on the proposals, saying the new system will better prepare students for college and careers.

“This work is centered around the future of our students in terms of the kind of education system they would like to see,” Rosa said.

IS A REGENTS’ DIPLOMA IMPORTANT?

Regents’ exams scores are not a crucial factor for college admission, particularly in schools outside of New York. They place much more emphasis on a student’s grade point average, transcripts, other testing scores such as Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT) and extracurricular activities.

Regents’ exams may factor into a school’s grading system and colleges do look at the courses students take and their performance in those classes.

This article was reprinted with permission from the New York State School Boards Association and correspondent Sara Foss.

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