Should an A be 92 percent or 90? Will the answer change this Ky. school’s failure rate?

Henry Clay High School Principal Paul Little said his school’s grading scale — an A is 92 percent instead of 90 percent — puts his students at a disadvantage and needs to be changed.

At its June 22 regular monthly meeting, Fayette school board members will be asked to consider changing the current grading scale at the Lexington high school to be more reflective of grading scales at the college level and be more competitive with other high schools for scholarships based on grade point average.

Little said at a June 8 planning meeting that the change will “get our students on an equal playing field” with the rest of the state.

Area schools on a 10 point scale — 90 percent is an A — include Frederick Douglass, Lexington Christian Academy, Sayre High School, Clark County, Madison County, Jefferson County, and Woodford County, school counselors said in a document.

Fayette district spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall said Henry Clay’s current grading scale is the grading scale adopted by the Fayette school board for grades sixth through twelve: 92% - 100% A; 83% - 91% B; 74% - 82% C; 65% - 73%D; 0%-64% F.

The proposed 10-point scale for Henry Clay is: 90% - 100% A; 80% - 89% B ;70% - 79% C; 60% - 69% D; 0%-59% F.

“The Fayette County Board of Education has a policy that sets forth grading standards, but that policy allows (school based decision making councils) to request a waiver in order to support the instructional program and best meet the needs of their students,” Deffendall said.

High schools in the district have varying grading scales.

Henry Clay’s staff said its students have a disadvantage earning scholarships and state Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarships or KEES money, which are determined by a student’s unweighted GPA.

An example of the KEES money difference looks like this: a student with a 3.0 grade point average at Henry Clay earns $1,000 towards college ($250 per year over four years) whereas a student at Douglass with a 4.0 GPA earns $2,000 towards college ($500 per year over four years), Henry Clay counselors said in a document. The KEES program provides scholarships to students who earn at least a 2.5 GPA each year of attendance at a certified Kentucky high school. The better you do in high school, the more you earn toward college, a state website said.

With a 10-point grading scale, Henry Clay students could earn higher GPA’s for the same grades. In order for Henry Clay to be academically competitive, the 10-point grading scale would put the school on a more equitable playing field with other high school students, not only in the district, but in the state.

In addition, the change would affect the school’s failure rate, including that among ninth graders.

More than 100 students earned 117 failing grades that were between the 60 percent to 64 percent range in the first semester of 2019.

This scale change would lower the retention rate and improve the graduation rate. In terms of athletics, the change levels the playing field for students in regards to high school tryout eligibility, the staff said. It also provides a better eligibility opportunity for student athletes registering with college eligibility clearinghouse organizations.

“We do have some students who struggle,” said Little. “Just because a kid may struggle with some academics doesn’t mean they are not going to be a productive citizen.”

To be more in line with post-secondary education, the 10-point grading scale sought by Henry Clay would match that of the University of Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky University, Western Kentucky University, University of Louisville, and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System, which includes the Bluegrass Community and Technical College. All BCTC dual credit courses use a 10-point scale.

Students may be earning an A for a 90 percent in their dual credit class whereas they earn a B in their non-dual credit courses, including Advanced Placement courses.

Fayette school board member Tyler Murphy said at the June 8 planning meeting that he was surprised the Henry Clay grading scale “had not been changed sooner.”

This story was originally published June 17, 2020 at 10:43 AM.