By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays USD school board reviewed newly approved high school graduation requirements at its meeting Monday.
The Kansas Board of Education approved the changes earlier this month. They will affect students who are in the seventh grade when they enter high school.
The recommendations don't affect the number of credits required for graduation but the classification of the classes that count toward graduation.
The state is still going to require 21 credits of graduation. Hays USD 489 requires 25 credits for graduation, except for Hays Virutal School students whose classes have already graduated. Those students can graduate with 21 credits.
"At this point, we are not adopting any of this," Superintendent Ron Wilson said. "We thought we would share what is being looked at. We will have some internal discussions of what that might look like going forward."
Shanna Dinkel, assistant superintendent and director of curriculum, gave a report on the changes.
Included in the changes would be a requirement for a semester of speech, debate, forensics, journalism or public speaking.
A unit of Science Technology Engineering and Math would be added to the three units of science and math that are already required.
Instead of one year of physical education, students would take a semester of PE, a semester of health and a semester of financial literacy. This would leave 4.5 units for electives.
"It doesn't mean standards are changing," Dinkel said. "They are changing the focus and reclassifying them."
The Kansas Board of Education also approved a recommendation from the Kansas Board of Regents for all students to complete federal student financial aid applications before graduation. Any student, family or school could opt out of this requirement.
The Hays school board also approved the purchase of an electric sign for the Early Childhood
Complex. The low bid is $34,245 from Complete Signs of Dothan, Ala. The sign will be paid for with grant funds.
Cover photo courtesy of Pixabay.