LOWELL | The Tri-Creek School Board is bringing back weighted grades in a pilot program for scholarship purposes only.
The pilot program will apply to seniors enrolled between Aug. 20 of this year and May 29, 2013.
Wendy Fallon, who was on the committee, said weighted grades will allow Tri-Creek students to qualify for scholarships which have eluded them in the past because of some colleges' GPA limits.
"This was a great crew of people with a vision to see kids succeed on a level playing field," she said of the task force. "This will open it up. Doing it right now gives opportunities to this senior class."
Tri-Creek Superintendent Debra Howe said it's imperative students submit a written request for a revised transcript now. Some scholarship applications are due on Thursday.
Shannon Richards, Lowell High School assistant principal and a member of the task force, told the board the hard work of Lowell students needs to be recognized and weighted grades will "give our kids a leg up."
Howe emphasized the weighted grades are to be used only for scholarships. They will be tracked to determine their impact, she said.
As approved, an A, B or C in an honors course would carry an additional weight of .5, and a 1.0 additional weight would be given for grades of A, B, or C in an advanced placement and/or dual credit course.
Letters explaining the weighted grades pilot have been forwarded electronically to parents. They provide the deadlines for transcript revision requests based on scholarship application dates.
Board President Doug Ward said the decision to remove weighted grades for honor courses was made by the School Board about seven years ago.
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