Dear Class of 2020 Students and Families,
The purpose of this letter is to make you aware of recent academic changes for the Class of 2020 which are a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a very challenging time for everyone with schools being closed, events being canceled and the other changes to normal everyday life that have taken place.
The intent of the N.C. State Board of Education, the N.C. Department of Public Instruction and Richmond County Schools for the Senior Class of 2020 is to graduate high school seniors who meet the state minimum requirement of 22 credits on their originally scheduled graduation date. Remote learning for seniors will be prioritized to focus on students who were not meeting expectations as of March 13, 2020.
The N.C. State Board recognizes that seniors should earn credit for their learning until the school closure on March 13, 2020. Grading practices for transcript purposes will “hold seniors harmless” for the impact of COVID-19. Seniors’ grades will not be negatively affected for any work submitted after March 13. The grading scale for seniors will be Pass (PC-19) or Withdraw (WC-19) for the Spring 2020 semester. Per N.C. State Board guidance, there are no exceptions.
Specific grading guidelines for the Class of 2020
• Fall Courses – students will receive grades for fall courses as already recorded in PowerSchool; year-long and semester. Fall grades will count toward the GPA.
• Spring Courses – students will receive a pass (PC-19) or withdrawal (WC-19) based on their learning and academic progress as of March 13, 2020.
• Per N.C. State Board of Education, spring grades will not calculate into a senior’s GPA.
If a student has a failing grade as of March 13 in a course required for graduation, Richmond County Schools will provide remote learning opportunities for the student to improve to a passing grade.
Opportunities for seniors to pass a course to meet graduation requirements shall include:
• Remote learning in their current coursework;
• Enrollment in N.C. Virtual Public School (NCVPS) for applicable courses;
• Participation in credit recovery aligned to instructional topics covered through March 13; or
• Passing a final locally developed assessment aligned to instructional topics covered through March 13
In addition, the requirement of CPR training for the Class of 2020 has also been waived by N.C. State Board of Education.
Dual Enrollment Guidance for Seniors
For seniors enrolled in courses through Richmond Community College, it is the goal of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction and the N.C. Community College System for seniors to complete Career and College Promise (CCP) courses within the current term. Like traditional high school courses, seniors can only earn a PC-19 or a WC-19 for college courses in spring semester to ensure equity across N.C.
1) Dually enrolled seniors that are able to complete the course will:
• Earn a PC-19 on their high school transcript and
• Earn the actual college course grade on their college transcript.
• Any student that was not passing the college course prior to March 13 will receive a WC-19 on their high school transcript and their earned grade on the college transcript.
2) Should a dually enrolled senior be unable to complete currently enrolled college courses:
• RCC will withdraw the student from the course.
• If the course is a graduation requirement and the student had a passing grade as of March 13, Richmond County Schools will enroll the senior in the corresponding high school course and give the student a grade of pass (PC-19) for the high school transcript.
• If the student is not passing the college course needed for graduation as of March 13, the students will be enrolled in the equivalent high school course and provided the opportunity to earn a passing credit through remote learning, NCVPS, credit recovery, or be given a locally developed assessment aligned to instructional topics covered through March 13.
• If the community college course is not a graduation requirement, the student will be withdrawn from the course (WC-19) with no negative impact.
Principals and counselors are working now to review grades and transcripts of students. Any student needing to complete additional work to meet graduation requirements will be contacted by the school in the next few days. At this time, no decisions have been made concerning graduation ceremonies as we are awaiting further information from the Governor’s Office. You will be provided with any updates as soon as they are available.
If you have any questions concerning these changes, please contact your school.
