Dear Federal Hocking Students, Staff, and Families,
At our last regular board of education meeting on March 12, 2024 there was a first reading of updates in our board policies. Most of these were the result of changes in law necessitating policy revisions. All of these were discussed at a previous board policy committee meeting. One of the changes recommended by the administration concerned graduation requirements. Graduation requirements have changed dramatically in the last several years. Part of the reason for this is the recognition that students don't all learn the same way and don't demonstrate competency in the same way. Currently, Ohio requires students to earn 20 credits, demonstrate competency using one of the five options approved by the state (state tests, career readiness, College Credit Plus, military enlistment, or a minimum ACT or SAT score), and demonstrate readiness by earning at least two graduation "seals", one of which can be a locally developed seal. This is confusing for many, but these requirements provide more options for students to meet graduation requirements than ever before. Folks may not realize this, but this is the result of much of the work done by Federal Hocking many years ago. Advisory, the senior portfolio, and the senior project have all been templates for the current minimum graduation requirements. The initial policy recommendation was to reduce the number of required credits from 27 to 20, which is the state minimum requirement. The board can have requirements above and beyond what the state requires. Adopting the state minimum requirements as prescribed in law would eliminate the senior project and the portfolio as a requirement. However, the board can reduce the number of credits required and still require the project and portfolio if they so choose. Policies have a first and second reading to give stakeholders the opportunity to voice their concerns and opinions about the changes as long as they are in compliance with law. The board has heard concerns on both sides of this issue from several in the community and have decided to not make any change to graduation requirements at this time.
As part of the district's strategic planning work all stakeholders - students, staff, parents, and community members will have the opportunity to take a survey to voice your priorities and concerns. The surveys are designed by the Mid Ohio Educational Service Center. They are currently being finalized and reviewed by Federal Hocking Local School Board members. The surveys will be available on the district website under the "News" section on the homepage. A message will be sent from the district on April 22, 2024. While the survey will be electronic, those who want to complete the survey on paper can contact the district office and one will be mailed to you or you can answer questions over the phone. The district office can be reached at 740-662-6691. These surveys will include questions specific to graduation requirements. The results will be shared with stakeholders and meetings for public participation will be held for further discussion in June 2024 as we move forward in this process. Thank you for being involved in the discussion.
Sincerely,
David Hanning