Graduation Requirements

Academic credits shall be awarded for successful completion of class requirements in grades nine through twelve. Graduation credit requirements are based on Carnegie credits earned. A student must earn 26 high school credits to graduate from the Kenosha Unified School District No. 1. Beginning in the fall of 2004, a student must also complete one of the following:

1. Earn a score of basic or above in three of five subtests on the high school Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Exam (WKCE)
2. Earn a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 1.0 on an unweighted scale through the seventh semester of high school; i.e., January of senior year
3. Meet one of the following test scores requirements:
1. ACT Assessment - 18 or above
2. SAT I Exam - 870 or above
4. Successfully complete an approved Individual Education Plan (IEP), Limited Language Plan (LLP), and/or Section 504 Plan

A credit deficient student who is at least 18 years of age may also successfully complete the District Competency Graduation Requirements or a comparable program to earn a District diploma. In addition, a District diploma may be earned by a transfer student through an academic review of the student’s transcript by a building administrator.

A high school team comprised of a building administrator, a counselor, and representative high school teachers shall constitute the review board for any contested decisions concerning graduation. Continued appeals shall be submitted to the Assistant Superintendent of Instruction/designee for a final decision.

All students shall be required to take a full schedule except senior year when students may be allowed to have one release per quarter or semester. In addition, four years of high school attendance shall be required unless early graduation is applied for and approved pursuant to established District procedures. Students are eligible for early graduation when they have completed the requirements for receipt of a diploma.

The Board may award a high school diploma to certain veterans, notwithstanding District and statutory high school graduation standards. To be awarded a diploma, a person must be at least 65 years of age, attended high school in the District or attended high school in Wisconsin and resides in the District, left high school before graduation to join the U.S. armed forces during a war period as defined in state law, and served on active duty under honorable conditions in the U.S. armed forces or in forces incorporated as part of the U.S. armed forces. War periods include, among others, World War II, the Korean Conflict, Vietnam War, and Persian Gulf War. The Board may also award a high school diploma to a person who received a high school equivalency diploma after serving on active duty in the U.S. armed forces or in forces incorporated as part of the U.S. armed forces if the person meets the other conditions outlined in this paragraph and to a veteran who has died, but who before dying, has satisfied the conditions outlined in this paragraph.

A. Credit Requirements

1. Specific Course Credits Required
   
   

SUBJECT AREA	Class of 2003 and 2004 26 Credits Required	Class of 2005 and Beyond 26 Credits Required
ENGLISH	4 credits	4 credits
SOCIAL STUDIES	3 credits	4 credits 3 credits of required courses-1 credit U.S. History 9th grade, 1 credit World History 10th grade, ½ credit U.S. Government & Politics or 1 credit Advanced Placement Government & Politics 11th or 12th grade, ½ credit Behavioral Science; plus 1 credit elective course
MATHEMATICS	4 credits	4 credits
SCIENCE	4 credits	4 credits* 3 credits of required courses-1 credit Integrated Science 9th grade or 1 credit Biotechnology 9th grade, 1 credit Biology 10th grade, 1 credit Chemistry-Based Course, Physics-Based Course, or Physical Science 11th or 12th grade; plus 1 credit elective course
PHYSICAL EDUCATION	1 ½ credits**	1 ½ credits**
HEALTH	½ credit	½ credit
CONSUMER EDUCATION	½ credit***	½ credit***
ELECTIVES	8 ½ credits	7 ½ credits
SPECIAL DIPLOMA REQUIREMENTS	For Honors with Distinction Diploma: 16 credits in honors courses are required along with completion of all other specified requirements.	For Honors with Distinction Diploma: 16 credits in honors courses are required along with completion of all other specified requirements.
*The required science course sequence does not apply to those in the honors program. **Unless exempted pursuant to Wisconsin Statutes, exemption shall be granted for medical reasons upon presentation of a physician’s statement. Students excused from physical education for all four years of high school for medical reasons shall be required to make up ½ credit in another elective subject for each semester excused from physical education. ***Waived for students who successfully complete ½ credit Honors Economics, ½ credit Economics, 1 credit Advanced Placement Economics, or 1 credit Marketing.



2. The District will provide access to honors, advanced placement, and post-secondary courses in accordance with state law requirements and established District procedures.
3. Summer school credit is awarded on the basis of one-half credit for each class successfully completed in classes equivalent to 80 clock hours per class scheduled. Prior approval by the principal is required to earn credit for summer school courses taken outside of the District.
4. No credit is earned for completion of driver education.
5. Credit deficient students who are 18, 19, or 20 years of age and are current residents of the District may be issued a District diploma if they satisfy the following Competency Graduation Requirements
1. Are enrolled members of a District cohort group, which means that students must have been enrolled members of a particular Kenosha Unified School District graduating class (i.e. Class of 2005). Eligible students must have been enrolled in the District prior to the end of their cohort year graduation date. Non-KUSD cohort students 18 yrs of age or older whose graduation year has expired will not be eligible to participate in the program.
2. Score at or above the fourth stanine on all predetermined subtests including core areas of the District’s adopted standardized achievement tests.
3. Demonstrate competency in writing, which can be accomplished by scoring at a level 4.0 or higher on the WKCE writing assessment or scoring at a level 3.0 or higher on the WorkKeys writing assessment.
4. Complete consumer education/economics, health, government and politics, or approved comparable courses.
5. Meet employability standards in one of the following ways:
• Successful employment for a six-month period of time and can provide validation; or
• Meet an employability component established by the District in the form of a work readiness portfolio.
6. Students will be required to assume any associated costs for the administration and scoring of District adopted standardized assessments.
6. Accelerated/alternative high school credit attainment is an option for high school students aged 16 and above who may earn high school credit based upon satisfactory completion of individual portions of a District or state-approved criterion referenced test at 85 percent mastery or on norm referenced tests at the 4^th stanine or above, normed at 12^th grade, 7^th month, independent of length of time required; completion of performance-based assignments, and attainment of minimum required credits.

B. Early Graduation

To be considered for early graduation, the student and the parent/guardian shall submit a written request to the principal no later than the end of the first marking period of the school year in which the student plans to graduate early.

The student’s course of study, earned grades in such courses, grade point average, and other performance indicators shall be made part of the student’s transcript.