THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 21, 1996 TAG: 9603210368
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY VANEE VINES, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
They could have broken with tradition and eliminated valedictorian and salutatorian distinctions. Or they could have clung to them, ignoring a plan that called for a new way to honor a broader group of students.
The School Board has opted for something in the middle, mixing the old with the new.
At its February retreat, the board said eliminating senior class valedictorian and salutatorian distinctions would bomb in a city where many residents say academic standards already are watered down. So they backed away from that idea.
Yet the board embraced another part of the same plan - the part calling for academically talented students in each graduating class to be recognized with summa cum laude, magna cum laude and cum laude labels.
The board will vote on the revised plan at tonight's meeting. The board delayed the decision at its regular meeting last month. If approved, the plan would take effect in the 1996-97 school year in all three high schools.
``I think it's not only a good compromise, it's a way to recognize more people,'' said board member Louise G. Walden, adding that many high achievers miss the top two spots by a fraction of a point.
Such students, she and other board members said, deserve more recognition for their hard work.
The graduates with the highest and second-highest grade-point averages traditionally are named valedictorian and salutatorian.
In the past, seniors with a GPA of 3.0 or above also graduated with ``honor status.''
The original plan was crafted by a committee of educators, student representatives, parents and coaches - with a nudge from Superintendent Richard Trumble, who had urged the board to move away from the naming of a valedictorian and salutatorian.
Like a handful of educators across the country, he criticized the valedictorian-salutatorian approach. He said it often encourages students to shy away from classes that carry less weight when grade-point averages are calculated - classes that can help them become well-rounded.
Several students said they favored the revisions, however.
``That would be the best way to do it; as long as they don't change from having a valedictorian and salutatorian,'' said James E. Lamb Jr., a 14-year-old I.C. Norcom High freshman.
``. . . You just can't do away with the best.''
Margaret Seagraves, whose daughter, Clare, was Churchland High's 1995 salutatorian, said she preferred to see the valedictorian and salutatorian titles ditched because of the often cutthroat competition for the two positions; and the fact that districts don't use the same grading scale, which determines the value of each letter grade.
``But it's a good compromise,'' she said, referring to the revised plan. The board also will consider a revised grading scale tonight.
The board came up with a combination platter of sorts. The highlights:
The student with the highest GPA would be named valedictorian; the second-highest, salutatorian.
Students graduating with a GPA above 4.00 would be named summa cum laude; 3.75 to 4.00, magna cum laude; 3.50 to 3.74, cum laude; 3.00 to 3.49, ``honor'' graduate. Students can earn above a perfect 4.0 because they may get extra credit points for taking some advanced courses.
Students would continue to be ranked according to their GPA.
It sounds OK, said Tamika Phillips, a Churchland senior.
But it won't make a difference as long as the valedictorian and salutatorian titles are maintained, she said.
``People are still going to fight for No. 1 and No. 2,'' said Phillips, who described how some peers reportedly cheated to maintain A's.
A fellow student once cried because of a missed A grade, she said.
``It always becomes . . . not how much they learned, but what grade they got.'' MEMO: For more details, Portsmouth residents can refer to Sunday's edition of
the Portsmouth Currents.
ILLUSTRATION: Louise Walden
KEYWORDS: PORTSMOUTH SCHOOL BOARD by CNB