The term Accredited School does not include entities that are accredited as home study programs or non-traditional educational centers.

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1 Policy Awarding Units and Transferring Credit Descriptor Code: JBC(4) Select Language Definitions: 1. Accredited School an elementary, middle or secondary school accredited by or holding provisional status from the Georgia Accrediting Commission, the Georgia Association of Christian Schools, the Association of Christian Schools International, the Accrediting Commission for Independent Study, the Southern Association of Independent Schools and/or one of the accrediting agencies that is a member of the Georgia Private School Accreditation Council, and/or one of the following regional accrediting agencies. a. Middle States Commission on Secondary School of Colleges and Schools (MSA) b. New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) c. New York Board of Regents d. North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) e. Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges (NASC) f. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) g. Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) h. The Alabama Independent School Association, and i. Schools outside the State of Georgia which have been certified by the particular state s State Department of Education as an accredited school. The term Accredited School does not include entities that are accredited as home study programs or non-traditional educational centers. 2. End of Course EOCT EOC Assessments administered at the completion of core high school courses specified by the State Board of Education to measure student achievement in the four content areas of English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. 3. Home Study Program an educational choice option conducted in Georgia in accordance with O.C.G.A or conducted in another state in accordance with the laws applicable to that state. 4. Non-traditional Educational Center educational institutions that support home study programs or other independent learning initiatives. This term does not include alternative/non-traditional education programs operated by local boards of education. 5. Private School an educational choice option conducted in Georgia in accordance with O.C.G.A (b) or conducted in another state in accordance with the laws applicable to that state. 6. Subject Area Competency a unit of high school credit awarded to students base on subject area competency as demonstrated by a pre-defined score on a state-adopted or approved assessment instruments, instead of or in combination with the completion of

2 courses through traditional classroom instructional minutes. 7. Unit of Credit evidence of course completion as demonstrated by a final course grade of 70 or higher on a numerical scale; or competency-based course credit as demonstrated by a pre-defined score on a state-adopted or approved assessment instrument. 8. Validation the process of verifying credits earned. Applicability In accordance with the State Board of Education, Forsyth County Board of Education will apply the requirements of this rule to all students regardless of the date in which they first entered ninth grade. Requirements for Granting Credit: Students entering the Forsyth County School System from accredited and nonaccredited public and private schools, including home study programs or schools, will be awarded credit for previous study and placed at the appropriate grade level based upon the following criteria: 1. STUDENTS ENTERING FROM ACCREDITED PUBLIC OR PRIVATE SCHOOLS Elementary and middle school students transferring to the Forsyth County School System from an accredited public or private school as defined above will be accepted and placed at the appropriate grade level in the Forsyth County School System according to the student s age and/or grade level at the former school. a. High school students transferring to the Forsyth County School System from an accredited public or private school will receive credit for courses taken at the former school as recorded on the transcript(s) from the issuing school or schools. b. Letter grades from transferred courses will be converted to a numerical grade using the Forsyth County School System s conversion formula set forth in the Administrative Procedures IHA. c. High school students who transfer from accredited schools must also pass state required high school assessments and meet State of Georgia s and Forsyth County School System s graduation requirements before a diploma will be issued. d. Local boards of education may award units of credit for courses offered in the middle grades that are based on the state-adopted curriculum for grades 9-12 approved by the State Board of Education. 2. STUDENTS FROM NON-ACCREDITED PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS Students requesting admission into the Forsyth County Elementary and Middle Schools from non-accredited public or private schools, including home schools, will be evaluated for grade placement based upon the following criteria:

3 a. State and local board of education policy requirements relating to entrance into kindergarten or first grade. b. Performance on standardized tests and/or instructional placement tests in language arts, mathematics, science and social studies. c. Grade level placement and performance in the non-accredited school or program. d. Chronological age verified by certified documents, physical size, social and emotional maturity levels of the particular student. After reviewing the above criteria, the principal of the school shall place the student in the appropriate grade level. A review of the placement will be conducted after six weeks to determine the final placement. 3. STUDENTS ENTERING HIGH SCHOOL FROM NON-ACCREDITED PUBLIC AND PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOLS a. Students requesting admission into a high school in the Forsyth County School System from private or public non-accredited schools or programs, including home schools, shall be awarded units of credit in the areas of language arts, science, social studies, and mathematics for previous course work based upon a review of the course materials and based upon the student s performance on standardized and/or instructional placement tests or by scholastic performance. b. For students entering from a home school, whether the home school met the requirements of O.C.G.A during the period of its operation may be considered in the school system s decision to award units. c. Students from public and private non-accredited schools, including home schools, must meet State of Georgia and Forsyth County School System s graduation requirements before a diploma will be issued. d. Grades for courses from non-accredited public or private schools, including home schools, for which the student receives credit from the Forsyth County School System shall be recorded as a number grade, but will not be averaged with grades received from courses taken in the Forsyth County School System. The number grade will be based on the student s performance on standardized and/or academic placement tests. Awarding Units of Credit for Dual Enrollment Courses Forsyth County Board of Education will award units of credits to students for high school courses taken through postsecondary institutions as described in the State Board of Education Rule Awarding Units of Credit for Career, Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) courses with Embedded Academic Core Standards 1. Local boards of education shall award course credit for the career, technical, or agricultural education course and course credit for the associated academic core course to students who successfully complete a course or course sequence in career, technical, or agricultural study that includes embedded standards from

4 an academic core subject area as adopted by the State Board of Education. 2. A student shall not earn more than three units of credit for academic core courses by completing career, technical, or agricultural courses that include embedded standards from an academic core subject area. 3. Units of credit earned through courses in career, technical, or agricultural study that contain embedded standards from an academic core subject area shall be awarded as outlined in the Georgia Department of Education s Guidance for Awarding High School Credit. 4. Local boards of education shall administer the appropriate EOCT EOC to a student taking a career, technical, or agricultural education course with embedded academic core courses of an area for which a EOCT EOC has been adopted unless the student has already passed such EOCT EOC Awarding Units of Credit for Mathematics Courses for Students Receiving Special Education Services Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). 1. In addition to provisions of this rule, local boards of education shall award units of credit for mathematics courses that will satisfy the mathematics course requirements in State Board of Education Rule to a student receiving special education services under IDEA if the student meets all of the following: a. Prior to the student entering the ninth grade, the student s Individualized Education Plan (IEP) Team identified the student had a disability that affected mathematics achievement. b. The student successfully earns course credit, in accordance with this rule, for Mathematics I and Mathematics II or GPS Algebra and GPS Geometry or CCGPS Coordinate Algebra and CCGPS Analytic Geometry; and c. The student successfully earns course credit, in accordance with this rule for at least two other state-approved mathematics courses, which may include, but not be limited to, Mathematics Support courses. 2. Local boards of education shall inform parents and students that students who do not complete Mathematics III, GPS Advanced Algebra, or CCGPS Advanced Algebra may not meet the mathematics admission requirements for entry into a University System of Georgia institution or other post-secondary institution without additional coursework. 3. The IEP Team for students who receive Mathematics course credit in accordance with this section shall document that: a. The student s disability has precluded the student from achieving gradelevel proficiency, as demonstrated by the student s pattern of performance on the state-mandated test in the area of Mathematics; b. The student s progress to date in response to appropriate instruction,

5 including special education and related services designed to address the student s individual needs, is such that, even if significant growth occurs, the IEP team is reasonably certain that the student will not successfully master the standards in Mathematics III, GPS Advanced Algebra, or CCGPS Advanced Algebra, which could include students enrolling in a single advanced mathematics course and receiving instruction over two years. Additionally, the determination of the student s progress has been based on multiple measurements that are valid for the content area of mathematics and that have been collected over a period of time; and c. The student has access to instruction in the state-adopted curriculum and will be required to successfully complete Mathematics I and Mathematics II or GPS Algebra and GPS Geometry or CCGPS Coordinate Algebra and CCGPS Analytic Geometry in addition to participating and earning credit in two additional state-approved mathematics courses, which could include students enrolling in a single advanced mathematics course and receiving instruction over two years. The student s IEP includes goals that are related to mathematics, support access to the content standards, and are designed to promote the student s progress in the content area stateadopted curriculum. Subject Area Competency to Receive Course Credit Forsyth County Board of Education will award a unit of credit to a student when the student successfully demonstrates subject area competency by scoring at the Exceeds level on EOC prior to taking the course. Students attempting to test-out must have parent permission and their parents shall be informed of potential costs prior to the EOCT administration. The cost of EOCT administration shall be paid by the parent or student. Course credit earned through testing-out shall be reported in the same way as credit earned through course completion. Students may earn no more than three units of credit by demonstrating subject area competency. EOC Assessment Administration to Transfer Students 1. Local boards of education shall administer the EOC to students enrolled in a Georgia public school while also enrolled in a private school, home study program, or non-traditional educational center for which they receive graduation credit for one of the required EOC courses. These students must take the EOC regardless of the private school, home study program, or non-traditional educational center s accreditation status. 2. Local boards of education shall not require students who enroll from accredited schools to take and pass the EOC to receive credit for a EOC course unless the student was concurrently enrolled in a Georgia public school while taking the

6 course at an accredited private school. 3. Local boards of education shall require students who enroll from non-accredited private schools, home study programs, or other non-traditional educational centers to take and pass the EOC with a minimum of 70 grade conversion score to receive credit for the course. A student enrolling from a non-accredited school will receive one test administration opportunity to demonstrate proficiency in order to earn credit for a course that requires the EOC. If the student does not pass the EOC on that administration, the local board of education shall not grant credit for that course. If the course is required to be eligible to receive a high school diploma, the student shall enroll in the course and take the EOC at the completion of the course Educational Placement of Children in Military Families Children of parents on active military duty, with few exceptions, should be placed based on unofficial records and simultaneously request official records. A student's age may not be a part of the placement decision if prerequisite requirements have been met in another state. The system must honor placements determined by sending schools, although nothing prohibits schools from conducting subsequent evaluations to ensure appropriate placement and continued enrollment in any course. Schools must accept a special power of attorney for enrollment purposes, may not charge tuition, and must facilitate their participation in extracurricular activities and on-time graduation. Right to Appeal If a parent, legal guardian, or student disagrees with either the credit awarded or denied for course work completed at a non-accredited public or private school, or a home school, or with the grade placement selected, an appeal may be made to a school committee designated by the Principal. The parent, legal guardian, or student has the right to appeal the school committee s decision to a committee appointed by the Superintendent from an administrative pool. The Superintendent may approve or deny the decisions made by the Administrative Committee. The decision of the Superintendent is final. Honor Graduates The determination of honor graduates, as well as the selection of valedictorian and salutatorian, shall be governed by the regulations set forth in the Administrative Procedures IHF. Eligibility for Extracurricular Activities Eligibility and on track requirements to participate in extracurricular activities, interscholastic athletics or any activity covered by local and state policy IDE and State Board of Education Rule must be met by students entering or re-entering the Forsyth County School System from public or private accredited or non-accredited schools. A student whose records are incomplete or whose official records do not show semester averages is ineligible to participate in extracurricular activities for a full semester plus any part thereof if entering the school district during a semester or grading period. For high school students from non-accredited public or private schools, the school s

7 principal must document on track credits based upon the units awarded as a result of the review and testing process described above in Requirements for Granting Credit, item 2.