MFISD considering changes to class ranking due to perceived ‘loophole’
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A perceived “loophole” allowing some transfer students to potentially soar through class rankings has prompted the Marble Falls Independent School District Board of Trustees to consider changes to their class ranking standards.
Under the district’s current rules, a student from an unaccredited institution could spend their first two years of high school outside of the district, then transfer in at the beginning of their junior year with an essentially blank grade point average.
Based on those rules, the student’s GPA – which dictates their class ranking – would then be based solely on their performance during the following semester, potentially allowing them to catapult to the top of their class after only taking one semester’s worth of classes in the district.
Concerns over the current ranking system were voiced by several parents during the public comments section of the last two board meetings, prompting discussion. The parents stressed the time-sensitive nature of making changes, as final rankings for juniors are calculated in June, and they are the rankings which students submit on college applications.
One parent, Katherine Terrell, claimed that there was a “loophole” in place that allowed for some transfer students to achieve unrealistic GPAs.
“(MFISD has) a loophole in place that allows homeschooled students and students from unaccredited institutions to earn a 6.0 gpa,” she said at a board meeting on Feb. 23. “We need to rectify this situation before class rank is calculated in June. Current juniors will apply for college with the rank they have earned as of this coming June.”
The Marble Falls School Board discussed the matter during its Monday, March 23, meeting, but made no decisions at the time. The board’s agenda did include some potential changes to the MFISD GPA calculation policies.
As per the proposed changes on the agenda, transfer students with pass/fail grades would be granted a 70 in passed classes, with the opportunity to take an assessment to raise the grade, and a 60 in failed classes for the purpose of calculating class rank.
Additionally, a student would need numerical grades for English, mathematics, and science courses included in the calculation for the first four semesters of high school to be eligible as the valedictorian and salutatorian in the class of 2029 and beyond.
Despite tabling the item at the most recent board meeting, trustees acknowledged that there seemed to be a need for changes, and for them to come before the June deadline.
“It’s obvious that there’s some issues with class ranking,” Trustee Gary Boshears said. “It’s just a matter of figuring out the right solution so that it’s effective all the way around.”
The next regular meetings of the school board are on April 20 and May 18.