CLEARFIELD – Administrators will continue to research the formula by which the students’ class ranking is calculated at the Clearfield Area Junior-Senior High School, announced Superintendent Terry Struble at Monday night’s school board meeting.
The class ranking determines the students who will graduate as the CAJSHS valedictorian and salutatorian. In addition, it determines each student’s ranking among their class of peers. Parents and students have alleged at recent school board meetings that the class ranking formula was changed and is unfair.
Struble said a number of factors have created the questions posed by parents and students. Although not class rank specific, he said that the honor roll process allows for the quick removal of students anytime their grade drops. For example, he said students are excluded from high honors and honor roll anytime their grades drop below a 90 percent and 85 percent, respectively.
According to him, it’s possible for a student to earn a 100 percent in every class, except for one in which they get an 84 percent, in a nine-week period. He said in that case, the student is excluded from honor roll. “It’s something that we’ve noticed is creating a concern,” he said.
Other factors contributing to the discussion over students’ class rankings, Struble said, is that there are a greater number of weighted elective courses available to the underclassmen. He said that administrators have expanded the number of elective courses that are college-aligned and this has provided more opportunities for underclassmen.
Additionally, Struble said that with shrinking enrollment at the CAJSHS, there are fewer juniors and seniors taking some of the weighted electives. This, he said, has created enrollment opportunities for the underclassmen.
A number of years ago, he said there was a cap, which restricted weighted courses to only juniors and seniors at the CAJSHS. He said that weighted courses were capped at 4.25 credits; if a student had credits exceeding the cap, he said they weren’t included in class ranking calculations.
Historically, Struble said the class ranking formula has allowed some courses to be weighted more than others. In fact, among the weighted courses, he said, it was more beneficial for students to take some over the others.
According to him, some historically weighted courses, such as biology and geometry, are now graduation requirements for all students. He said that administrators must determine if these courses will continue to be weighted now that they are graduation requirements.
Struble noted that there were some limitations with the previous software used to calculate class rankings. He said basically it created the need for class rankings to be calculated by hand to a certain point by school guidance counselors, which created another wrinkle in the process.
Throughout the school year, he said administrators calculate three rankings for students: a standard grade point average for the current nine-week period and then a cumulative one; a weighted GPA that’s both current and cumulative; and a class rank GPA by year that’s cumulative in its treatment.
During the senior year, he said the administrators calculate to determine the students’ class rank for the awards day and then for the valedictorian and salutatorian. This class rank calculation, he said, includes all grades through the third nine-week period.
Struble believed that the combinations of these factors had created a lot of questions about the scenarios facing students and their families. He said the administrators will continue to investigate the class ranking formula, confirm the process used at the CAJSHS and recommend alterations if determined to be necessary.
Parent Michael Ternoway said there were “obvious problems” with the class ranking formula at the CAJSHS. He alleged that administrators changed the formula by which class rankings were calculated and very few people were made aware of this change.
Ternoway pointed out that some students have “stacked up” weighted classes while others have been unable to get into them. He said this wasn’t fair and discriminatory and Struble has even admitted students will never catch up to those who have more weighted courses ahead of them in the class rankings.
Ternoway believed it was “sad” that administrators didn’t have any plans to recalculate the class rankings. “If you did, it would be all different,” he said. Ternoway said he “wasn’t going away” and planned to continue to fight on behalf of future students with other members of the community.
Parent AJ Coval said he appreciated that administrators were investigating the class ranking calculations. He said once they determined the formula to be used moving forward, he would like parents to be made aware, so that they can also calculate it on their own. “I don’t think it should be secretive,” said Coval.
As a “housekeeping detail,” he asked the board members if any of them felt threatened by the parents who spoke out during the public comment session at the regular meeting in July. He said that the local newspaper had described it as a case of “rank rage,” which was an “unfair depiction.”
“Rage is a violent and uncontrollable anger,” said Coval. “That’s not the case here. We’re just trying to get information. We don’t want to be a part of the process of selling newspapers.”
Parent Jeff Luzier presented the board with spreadsheets of grades. He said a 2014 graduate who was not his child had willingly provided their grades for his presentation. The district’s attorney said in that case, he’d prefer the information be presented in an executive session.
Luzier said he had redacted the spreadsheet and didn’t intend to identify the student. The district’s attorney said he couldn’t predict what might be said to which Luzier asked for his presentation to be stopped if he began to cross the line.
Board member Larry Putt said he didn’t have a problem hearing Luzier’s presentation so long as he didn’t identify the student. However, board member Phil Carr believed it would be inappropriate for him to present a student’s grades other than his own child but was open to hearing it in executive session.
Board President Mary Anne Jackson asked Luzier if he could briefly summarize his presentation without going into specifics. Luzier presented spreadsheets of grades for a graduate from 2014 and then for his son in 2015. Luzier alleged that the class ranking formula was changed from one year to the next, very few people knew and it had a substantial effect on class rankings.
Luzier said he wanted to see students’ class rankings recalculated and for the district to face whatever consequences that arise from it. Carr pointed out that those class rankings were already in the books and scholarships had been awarded to the valedictorian and salutatorian.
Luzier said the district expects a contractor to complete their job correctly and parents expect the same from the administration. When Carr asked if the parents wanted changes made to the scholarship recipients, a parent in the audience replied, “Yes, if they’re wrong.” Luzier said the class ranking formula was flawed and should never be used again.
Sophomore student Alex Coval, who was ranked sixth in the ninth grade class in 2015, said he struggled to understand the class ranking formula. He said his lowest grade was a 98 percent in honors biology, which was weighted. Coval said if someone above him in the Top 10 had a 100 percent in every class, except one 85 percent or so, that should put the person below him.
“There’s no reason they should be ahead of me,” he said. “… A few people who are not on high honors are ranked ahead of me.” He also asked about the calculations of the students’ GPAs. He said based upon math, if all of his classes were weighted at 1.1 percent, his highest GPA for the year would be 110 percent. However, he said at the end of the ninth grade, he received a 112 percent and other people had 116 percent on their award letters.
Carr asked Coval about his future career plans. He stated plans to pursue crime scene investigation and forensic science. Board member Gail Ralston thanked Coval for showing his strength in character by addressing the board.
Members of the press asked Struble if administrators used a different class ranking formula in 2014-15, as alleged by Luzier in his presentation. Struble said that was Luzier’s opinion based upon his own research into the matter. Beginning this year, Struble said the valedictorian and salutatorian were presented scholarships of $15,000 and $10,000, respectively.