IKF: Graduation Requirements

Last Revised Date: 08/10/2020 The Board of Education for the School of the Osage establishes the following graduation requirements as a condition of receiving a diploma. The superintendent or designee will regularly communicate these requirements to students and parents/guardians and recommend modifications to the Board when necessary.

Requirements

A student must meet the following requirements in order to graduate from the School of the Osage, unless otherwise exempted. The student must:

1. Complete a total of 28 credits in grades nine and above, including credits required by the State Board of Education.

2. Pass examinations on the provisions and principles of American history, American institutions, American civics, and the Missouri and U.S. Constitutions. (§§ 170.011, .345, RSMo)

3. Successfully complete a course of instruction of at least one semester in length on the institutions, branches and functions of the government of the state of Missouri, including local governments, the U.S. government and the electoral process. (§ 170.011, RSMo)

4. Have earned credit in the School of the Osage's educational program between the ninth and twelfth grades.

5. Have taken all required end-of-course (EOC) examinations. (DESE Graduation Guidance)

6. Have received 30 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instruction and training in the proper performance of the Heimlich maneuver or other first aid for choking. (§ 170.310, RSMo)

Exceptions

1. Graduation requirements for a student with a disability receiving special education services pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) may be determined according to the student's individualized education program (IEP). Any specific graduation requirement may be waived if recommended by the student's IEP team. (DESE Graduation Guidance)

2. Students transferring from other Missouri school districts or charter schools, private or parochial schools, home schools, unaccredited schools, and schools in other states or countries will have their credits transferred in accordance with guidance from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)and may have some graduation requirements waived depending on the circumstances. (DESE Graduation Guidance)

3. The district will waive the requirement to pass examinations on the provisions and principles of American history, American institutions and the Missouri and U.S. Constitutions for students who transfer from a school outside Missouri if they can document the successful completion of a course of instruction in the institutions, branches and functions of state government, including local governments, the U.S. government and the electoral process. Such instruction must have been completed in grades nine through twelve. The district will waive the requirement to pass a civics examination when recommended by the student's IEP team. (§ 170.011, RSMo, DESE Graduation Guidance)

4. Graduation requirements for foster care students will be modified or waived in accordance with law and Board policy IGBE. (§ 160.1990, RSMo)

5. Students in the household of an active duty member of the military, including students in the household of certain veterans who are deceased or injured as defined by law, who transfer to the district may have graduation requirements modified or waived in accordance with law. (§ 160.2000, RSMo)

6. Eligible students who successfully complete the Missouri Option Program will be awarded a high school diploma. (5 C.S.R. 20-500.330)

Earning Credit, Substituting Credit and Alternatives

1. The superintendent or designee is directed to assign credit values for courses offered by or through the school district and to develop formulas and procedures for awarding credit to students who transfer from a district that uses a different standard for awarding credit.

2. The School of the Osage recognizes units of credit obtained through accredited schools and school districts, including credits earned through courses delivered primarily through electronic media, such as online courses. For the purposes of this policy, an “accredited school” is a Missouri public school, a Missouri charter school, the Missouri Course Access Program (MOCAP); a private agency where students with disabilities are placed by a public school; or any school or school district accredited by the Missouri State Board of Education, AdvancED or the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS). If a school or school district is located in another state, that school or school district must be accredited by that state's department of education, AdvancED, ISACS or the equivalent organizations. (§ 161.670, RSMo, DESE Graduation Guidance)

3. The district may allow a student to fulfill one credit of any district-required mathematics, science or practical arts unit with a district-approved computer science course if the student has taken or is on track to take all courses that require end-of-course examinations for math and science. The district will notify all students relying on this provision that some institutions of higher education may require four units of academic credit in mathematics for college admission. The district will require the parent, guardian or legal custodian of each student to acknowledge in writing that taking a computer science course to fulfill a unit of academic credit in mathematics may have an adverse effect on college admission decisions. (§ 170.018, RSMo)

4. Students may earn credit by other means as approved by the Board and in accordance with law.

Diplomas and Certificates

Students who complete the district's graduation requirements or are otherwise entitled to a diploma in accordance with law and district policy will receive a district diploma.

District Diploma for Coursework Completed in Other Districts

In accordance with law and DESE guidance, the district may be required to issue a diploma to students who did not complete their education in the district but who graduated based on the district's graduation requirements. Such circumstances include, but are not limited to, situations where a foster student transfers from the district to another school or district or a student in the household of an active duty member of the military transfers to another district, in accordance with law. (§§ 160.1990, .2000, 167.019, RSMo)

Diplomas from Other Districts

Students in the household of an active duty member of the military, including students in the household of certain veterans who are deceased or injured as defined by law, who transfer to the district at the beginning of or during their senior year and who will not meet the graduation requirements of the district by the end of the senior year may receive a diploma from the school district they are transferring from if they are able to meet the graduation requirements of that district. (§ 160.2000, RSMo)

Foster care students who enroll in the district at the beginning of or during their senior year who cannot meet the district's graduation requirements by the end of the senior year, even after all alternatives have been considered, may receive a diploma from the previous school attended if they are eligible to receive a diploma from the previous school. (§ 160.1990, RSMo)

Certificate of Attendance

Students with disabilities who reach age 21 or otherwise terminate their education and who have met the district's attendance requirements but have not completed the requirements for graduation may receive a certificate of attendance as directed by the student's IEP team. (DESE Graduation Guidance)

Career and Technical Education Certificate

In addition to receiving their graduation diploma, students may earn a career and technical education certificate (CTE) if they meet the standards created by the State Board of Education.

Seal of Biliteracy

The district may award a Missouri Seal of Biliteracy to students who have attained proficiency in English and at least one other language before high school graduation in accordance with rules established by DESE.

5 C.S.R.20-100.190

5 C.S.R.20-100.230

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JECC-1 ASSIGNMENT OF STUDENTS TO GRADE LEVELS/CLASSES