OCR Text |
Show New edict might keep 500 seniors from graduating By KRIS JOHNSON StafTWriter For the first time in history, nearly near-ly 500 high school seniors in Davis County may not graduate this month due to poor citizenship grades, said a Davis County School Board spokesperson. The Board approved a "District Attendance and Discipline Policy' in February 1990, which includes a citizenship credit requirement for high school graduation. This requirement re-quirement became effective with the graduating class of 1990-91, said Dr. Stephen Ronnekamp, Davis County School District Assistant Assis-tant Superintendent. "Failure to earn the required citizenship credit will result in a student not receiving a high school diploma,' he said. The edict has left area students scrambling to "make up" their errant citizenship If they are unable to do so, their future choices may be limited. For example, on a job application the student must answer "no" to the question, "Do you have a high school diploma? Moreover, some universities may not accept students who do not have a high school diploma. Just because a student loses their citizenship credit, doesn't mean they can't graduate. They are many ways for them to make up their credit before graduation exercises, Ronnekamp said. One way of making up credit is by attending evening citizenship classes, which are sponsored by the school of Community Education; or they can participate in a special alternative program developed by the individual school. Students also have the option of doing school or community service to make up lost credit. Ronnekamp said all of the high schools in the district have gone to great lengths to notify the seniors and their parents of citizenship credit problems. In addition, regular report cards, and school counselors have been making individual appointments ap-pointments with students who have lost citizenship credit, as well as sending notification letters home to parents. "We're giving our students all the fair warning; hopefully they will take advantage of that. There may be some students who won't take the time to make up their citizenship citizen-ship credit; and if that's the case, we will hold their diploma just to show . that we will do it," said Rulon Homer, principal of Bountiful High School. For every lost citizenship credit, the student is required to attend four hours of class. Curriculum for the two hour make-up classes includes everything from teaching self- ; esteem to providing a study period, -he said. . "Our primary incentive is to get the students to make up those credits as soon as possible, instead of waiting until the last minute. . With graduation coming up, our night school attendance has in- creased to approximately 50 , students, where we used to have 15 -or 20. Some of the students have been mowing lawns, or doing custodial work after school to make up lost credits, said Homer. "Hopefully, as we get further into the discipline program years down the road, students will understand that we are serious about things; and that we want overall behavior to be better, said Clyde Jackson, assistant principal at Davis High SchooL "I really think that some of the students feel we'll just let them go through the graduation ceremony, even though they haven't fulfilled their citizenship requirements. After the May 24 deadline, we will make our graduation list If the seniors have not met all the requirements, re-quirements, they will not be able to participate in the graduation exercises," exer-cises," he said. Area high schools are continuing ; to update and change the records as students continue to make up their lost credits. The number of students who will not be participating in the graduation ceremony due to citizen- ship problems has not yet been ' , tabulated j |