Clarification: The initial picture used as the thumbnail image for the story was a Hays Post file photo, and not a photo of students enrolled in this program. Hays Post apologizes for any confusion.
By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Four students at Hays High School who were in danger of not graduating will be walking across the stage to get their diplomas on May 15 thanks to a new credit recovery program.
This spring HHS implemented the Boost program. It allows students to fulfill requirements for a class they previously failed.
To enter the Boost program, students have to have earned a 57 to 62 percent in the course they are hoping to recover. Passing is a 63 percent.
Assistant Principal Fred Winter said many of the students in the boost program were freshmen, who may have had difficulty in transition to the high school.
Regaining those credits keeps those students on the right track toward graduation and encourages them to put in the work to pass their classes in the first place, he said.
"To not start in the hole is a huge thing too," Winter said.
Students and their parents have to sign a memorandum of understanding that they will follow the guidelines and expectations of the Boost program.
"The students had to commit," said Melanie McDonough, HHS computer-based learning teacher. "They had to believe in this. They had to do the work. They had to put that time in."
The students receive an incomplete for the course and have about a month to complete the work necessary to pass the course.
The district's computer-based learning program Edgenuity can be used for students to complete the coursework.
Although the passed class counts toward graduation, it does not count toward KHSAA requirements for activity participation.
Forty-eight students with a total of 52 courses participated in the program this spring. Students were able to pass 42 of the 52 courses.
Nine students will need to attend summer school to complete their courses.
McDonough said students are not only gaining credit needed to graduate, but they are also learning life lessons about time management, accountability, communication and understanding contracts.
"Not only did they have to carry their regular load, but now they had something on top of it, so that time manage piece was important," she said.
McDonough said the program is something to celebrate.
"Students are catching up with their peers. They are starting to have the idea they can do hard things. They know 'I can do this. It's just going to take some work,'" she said.
The program will be offered again after the spring semester. The program will begin within two and half weeks of school letting out, and school officials said they hope it will reduce the number of students who need to attend summer school.
Cover image courtesy Pixabay