Board to Host Statewide Public Hearings on High School Redesign Recommendations

August 26, 2005

BOARD TO HOST STATEWIDE PUBLIC HEARINGS ON HIGH SCHOOL REDESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS

The State Board of Education will hold six public hearings to gather comments through out the state on proposed changes to Idaho 's high schools and middle schools.

"The Board is actively seeking input from citizens across the state on State Board rule changes to increase high school graduation standards. The Board encourages individuals to come to one of the six public hearings or send in written comments," said Sue Thilo, Chair of the Board's Accelerated Learning Taskforce that created the recommendations.

Hearings will be held in Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Twin Falls, Boise, Lewiston, and Coeur d'Alene. All hearings will begin at 6:30 p.m. The hearings will be:

Date of Hearing	City	Location/Meeting Room
October 5	Idaho Falls	Eastern Idaho Technical College 1600 South 25th East Creek Bldg, Room 558 Idaho Falls, ID 83404
October 6	Pocatello	Idaho State University 1065 S. Cesar Chavez Pond Student Union Little Wood River Room Pocatello, ID 83209
October 12	Boise	Boise State University Student Union Building Jordan ABC 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1335
October 13	Twin Falls	College of Southern Idaho 315 Falls Avenue Taylor Building , Room 277 Twin Falls, ID 83303-1238
October 18	Lewiston	Lewis-Clark State College Williams Conference Center 500 8 th Avenue Lewiston, ID 83501
October 19	Coeur d' Alene	North Idaho College Edminster Student Union Driftwood Bay Room 1000 West Garden Avenue Coeur d' Alene, ID 83814

The Board approved initial recommendations for redesigning Idaho 's high schools in August. A taskforce made up of educators, curriculum directors, board members, officials from Idaho 's higher education system and professional technical education met for seven months researching best practices for high school reform and other state's recommendations. The new rule and policy changes include:

Increase the number of required math credits from four to eight and science credits from four to six to graduate from high school.
Require that eight elective credits be "career focused." Career focus electives would relate to a student's postsecondary readiness plan and could include subjects like art, music, debate, drama, computer science, etc.
Require students to take a college placement exam by the end of 11th grade.
Require students to complete a senior project.
Ensure every Idaho high school offers advanced opportunities for students like Advanced Placement, international baccalaureate, tech-prep, and dual credit.
Require a postsecondary readiness plan by the end of 6th grade. Students would create a plan with the assistance of a counselor and their parents to take classes that relate to their interests and educational goals after high school. The plan can be changed to accommodate new interests and career goals.
Require a cumulative "C" average requirement for middle school students in math, science, language arts and social studies.
Require successful completion of pre-algebra before entering 9th grade.

The Board will also collect written comments on the rule changes. Write to:

State Board of Education
P.O. Box 83720
Boise , ID 83720-0037
Attn: High School Rule Changes

Written comments must be received by October 26, 2005. For more information on the Board's proposal, visit http://www.boardofed.idaho.gov to read the proposed rule changes, background material, and view a side-by-side comparison of what the requirements are now and how they would change.

The Board will also be hosting a high school redesign summit on September 23 featuring state and national speakers explaining the need for high school reform and Idaho 's plan to increase rigor in our high schools.

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