General Academic Information
The following is a list of the minimum credits needed in all areas.
| TOTAL CREDITS REQUIRED | 50 |
| ENGLISH | 8 |
| English I | 2 |
| English II | 2 |
| English III | 2 |
| English Elective | 2 |
| MATH | 6 |
| SCIENCE | 6 |
| Earth and Physical Science | 2 |
| Biology/Chemistry | 2 |
| Science Elective | 2 |
| HUMANITIES | 6 |
| Economics | 1 |
| Civics | 1 |
| Geography/World History | 2 |
| U.S. History/H.O.T.A. | 2 |
| PHYSICAL EDUCATION/HEALTH | 3 |
| PE 1/PE 2 | 2 |
| Elective PE | |
| Health | 1 |
| WORLD LANGUAGE | 4 |
| FINE ARTS | 2 |
| APPLIED ARTS/TECHNOLOGY | 2 |
| ELECTIVES | 13 |
| MYP PROJECT |
PARTICIPATION IN THE GRADUATION CEREMONY
A student who successfully completes all requirements of the Board of Education and is in good standing may participate in graduation exercises and will receive a diploma at that time. Only those students who have earned their required number of credits may participate in the graduation exercises. Also note that all fines and fees must be paid in full in order to participate in the graduation ceremony.
REGISTRATION:
Each student's confirmed schedule for the fall semester will be available in August. The exact dates for registration will be sent out during the summer and are posted on the web site home page for SHS. At that time students pay fees for courses, athletic activities, class pictures, student ID's, etc. Students who are unable to register (i.e. new students) will receive their schedules in the counseling office on the first day of school or they may make appointments with counselors.
No student may earn more than 7.5 credits per semester by combining regular course offerings with alternative credit opportunities unless approved by administration. Course enrollments are determined by facilities, sufficient equipment, and safety limits. All students must take at least (6) classes in semester 1 unless special arrangements have been approved by the building administration.
Credits at Summit High School are earned at a rate of one (1) credit per course per semester. These semester credits are earned upon demonstrating achievement of all course content standards and required elements of the course including midterm and final exams (1.5 or higher final grade).
Students transferring to SHS are classified - as deemed by CDE (Colorado Department of Education) policy, as full time, if enrolled in a minimum of (6) classes. Part time student status is 2-5 classes.
Transfer students will be given credit for courses taken outside Summit High School based on the following criteria:
- Compatibility with CDE and SSD standards and Summit High School curriculum.
- Approval of principal, counselor, and/or department head.
- Consistent with BOE policy JGA and JGA-R.
- New students will be registered into classes according to credits earned and graduation requirements needed to earn a SHS diploma.
- Credits do transfer.
- GPA will not transfer in from another high school or accredited institution. Student’s GPA will be
calculated based on SHS course performance only.
- Students transferring after the second week of a semester will be placed only into classes for which there is a transfer grade.
ALTERNATIVE CREDITS:
Students have the option of earning some credits through alternative means such as correspondence courses, on-line course work, and CMC. The number of credits earned through alternative means is limited to eight (8). All alternative credits must be pre-approved by the counseling department and the administration. Please see the counseling department for further information on CMC classes and other alternative credit sources.
WITHDRAWAL PROCEDURES:
Students who leave Summit High School before the end of the year must obtain a withdrawal form from the counseling department. This form must be completed and have all required signatures; this is the student's responsibility. The student is also responsible for returning all books and paying all fines or outstanding fees owed to the school. Transcripts, immunization records, and transfer grades/credits will be sent to the student's new school.
MINIMUM NUMBERS IN CLASSES:
All classes require at least 12 students or sections may be cancelled for the semester; students will be reassigned to another class. If it is a year long class, the second semester may still be cancelled if enrollment drops below 12.
Maximum number of students in any one class is determined by facilities available for the class. Seniors and then juniors get priority for space in a class. After the second week of the first semester, no student may withdraw from a class and enroll in another class for credit unless an administrator approves the recommendation for the change. The cut off date for withdrawals and schedule changes is two weeks after the first day of each semester, unless given administrative approval for a later date. A student withdrawing from a class for any reason at any time other than the window defined above, needs to follow the class drop policy.
SCHEDULE CHANGES:
Much time is devoted to assisting each student in selecting a set of courses that fit his/her needs, interests, and that are included in each student’s ICAP. Teachers, counselors, parents and the student are involved in this important process. Students request courses and the computer will utilize all class periods, all teachers, and available classrooms while placing students in class. Once the registration process is completed, schedule changes will be made only for compelling academic reasons: i.e. improper prerequisites, improper level placement, or failure of a course. No schedule changes will be made to accommodate a student’s work schedule. No schedule changes will be made for a specific class period, a specific teacher or due to friends in a specific class.
GRADES:
A grade point average is an average of all grades attained in relation to the credit value of each class and the number of classes attempted. A “Pass” grade is not included in the G.P.A.
Higher-level courses can receive more quality points for percentage grades earned. This is known as grade weighting. The following courses are on a weighted scale: IBDP classes, AP courses, CMC courses. Weighting is calculated in the G.P.A as follows: Percentage grades in AP courses are factored by 1.1; IB Diploma classes are weighted at 1.1 (except for Math Studies Yr. 1 which is un-weighted for one year); CMC courses by 1.05.
GRADING SCALE
| Points | Proficiency Level | Description |
| 4.0 | Advanced | Student consistently exceeds grade level expectations/standards and is able to apply them almost faultlessly in a wide variety of situation. The student demonstrates originality and insight and regularly produces work of high quality. |
| 3.5 | Advanced | Student consistently meets and exceeds grade level expectations/standards and is able to apply learned information and skills to new and unfamiliar situations with original insights beyond what is covered in the classroom. |
| 3.0 | Proficient | Independently, student consistently meets and sometimes exceeds grade level expectations/standards and is able to apply learned information and skills to complex ideas and processes in familiar situations. (This is the level of being “taught”) |
| 2.5 | Proficient | With minimal adult support, student consistently meets grade level expectations/standards and is able to apply learned information and skills to complex ideas and processes in familiar situations. (The student is showing proficient level of work but not as consistently) |
| 2.0 | Progressing | The student meets or exceeds proficiency of foundational details and processes or prerequisite skills, but is still working toward proficiency of the complex ideas and processes of the grade level. |
| 1.5 | Partially Proficient | With assistance, the student displays knowledge of foundational details and processes or prerequisite skills. |
| 1.0 | Unsatisfactory | The student is rarely able to display knowledge of foundational details and process, even with help. |
| .5 | Unsatisfactory | The student is unable to display knowledge of foundational details and process, even with help. |
| NG | No Grade | The student has not provided enough evidence to determine a score. |
SCALED RUBRICS
As an IB school, Summit High School is utilizing rubric scoring to a larger extent each school year and is moving to an entirely standards based grading system beginning Fall 2013. A rubric is a chart of grade descriptors which provide greater description for each level of proficiency. Not only are students demonstrating knowledge, but also they are also scored on how well they can apply that knowledge in similar/ familiar and unfamiliar situations. Rubric scores may occur in the grade book and will be converted to a percentage grade for reporting purposes. Clarification of grading/scoring practices should be discussed with the teacher.
If athletics, choir, band or speech team competitions are going to be a part of a student's plans in high school, he/she should be aware of eligibility rules adopted by the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA). Students must be enrolled in a minimum of five academic classes both the semester before they are participating and during the semester of participation. They may be failing one class during the season and still participate, as long as they are passing at least five classes.
The CHSAA Guidelines are as follows:
The student must be enrolled and passing in at least five academic classes. (Study hall does not count as a class for CHSAA.) The student enrolled in more than 5 classes cannot fail more than 1 class per semester. A student may not participate in the upcoming year if they reach the age of 19 prior to August 1. Any student who has attended high school more than eight semesters is ineligible for high school athletics. “Extracurricular activity” is defined as the performance, but not practice, for any activity sanctioned by the school and occurring outside of the normal class period/school day or beyond the high school grounds. Examples of extracurricular activities include musicals, speech team, peer counseling activities, and field trips. Eligibility for participation in an extracurricular activity follows the CHSAA Guidelines.