High School Graduation Requirements

Byron Yankey, College and Career Advising Program Manager at Byron.Yankey@osbe.idaho.gov
Next Steps Idaho Outreach Team at info@nextsteps.idaho.gov

No. In March 2020, the State Board waived the Senior Project graduation requirement. The Board also waived the spring 2020 administration of the ISAT, which is not required to graduate.

The civics exams is a statutory requirement and cannot be waived by the Board. More information can be found here (starting on p. 3): https://boardofed.idaho.gov/guidance…

“Because school districts and charter schools can determine how this requirement is met, there is a large amount of flexibility within the requirements. Section 33-1602, Idaho Code: (7) Starting with the 2016-2017 school year, all secondary pupils must show they have met the state civics and government standards for such instruction through the successful completion of the civics test or alternate path established by the local school district or charter school that shows the student has met the standards.”

The College Board has indicated that they will be changing the administration of all Advanced Placement (AP) tests at the end of this school year. Tests will be administered to students at home and will last 45 minutes. Students who take a test will still receive a score that ranges from 1-5. Pursuant to Board policy III.Y. Advanced Opportunities, all postsecondary institutions will continue to award college credit for AP test scores of 3 or higher that are earned by students via these modified testing procedures.

College Board will not charge anything for an exam that isn’t taken, including the base exam fee as well as any additional fees such as the late order fee and canceled/unused exam fee. Specific resources for high schools and AP coordinators can be found on the College Board website.

Idaho’s higher education institutions and high schools are working on how best to do this and we will post updates here.

Some high schools are moving to pass/fail grading for all high school courses, which may affect students’ Grade Point Averages (GPA). Pass/fail grading in regular high school courses is not anticipated to have significant impacts on admission, placement, or scholarship decisions at the postsecondary institutions. For example, Lewis-Clark State College plans to use 7th-semester transcripts in making scholarship awards for Fall 2020 incoming freshmen. However, the postsecondary institutions may need to address the potential impacts of course-specific pass/fail grades on admissions to some professional programs, like nursing and educator preparation programs.

The State Board and State Department of Education are working together to determine what impact pass/fail grading in high school courses may have on Direct Admissions, Apply Idaho, and the Opportunity Scholarship. More information on this issue is forthcoming.

No. The State Board has taken great care to preserve local control while still ensuring the safety and well-being of all Idaho students.  This is evident in the decision to allow schools to resume normal operations in the 2019-2020 year IF they can meet criteria established by the Board (link). The State Board also decided that each school district may choose how they will implement and/or require the Senior Civics test to be proctored.

Yes. No student should give up on achieving their GED because of COVID-19 related obstacles. A short list of alternative GED programs include:

CWI
ISU
GED®
LCSC
NIC
NIC (Sandpoint)
CSI
CEI
BSU
Life’s Kitchen
TRIO

For personalized guidance, contact the State Board of Education’s College and Career Advising Program Manager, Byron Yankey at byron.yankey@osbe.idaho.gov