Valley School Board to Vote on Grade Policy Next Month
Posted
Jordan Fouts-
AKRON – The Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. Board indicated Monday they favor a “Progressive F” policy to cover student grades and extracurricular participation. Board members agreed to vote on a policy next month after hearing from High School Assistant Principal Jon Hutton how many students would be excluded from athletics and other extracurriculars under three example policies. Hutton presented the figures during a special meeting Monday. Under Progressive F, which places a student on probation upon his first F grade and removes him from activities after another F, Hutton estimated that about 39 students would be ineligible for activities throughout the school year, based on current grades. A “No Pass No Play” policy, requiring that students not receive a single F to remain eligible, would take about 74 students out of activities, he said. A “Grade Point” policy, requiring a minimum 2.0 grade point average or a C- for the previous term to remain eligible, would exclude about 32 students a year. Board members indicated they favored the Progressive F policy or some variation of it, because it gives students a grace period to improve their grades before excluding them. “It’s a carrot and stick. Right now it’s all stick, and we need to get some carrot in there,” Hutton remarked, also noting he was surprised by how many students would be excluded by some policies while making his calculations. Board member Rod Eaton observed that Progressive F accomplishes what they’re looking for. He earlier said he thought he liked No Pass No Play, but the projected exclusion numbers were too high, and said he doesn’t want to discourage kids from activities. “I want kids to play sports. I don’t want to put them on the streets, so to speak,” he said.
