Dear Parents/Guardians,

When developing an academic calendar, school administrators are always careful to include tentative plans for possible school closures due to inclement weather. An extended school closure due to a global health pandemic has not previously been a consideration. However, in recent weeks, both state and local education leaders have encountered unforeseen challenges due to COVID-19. In response, our community has reacted with flexibility, compassion, and grace, and for that, we thank you!

The Mississippi Department of Education met on March 26, 2020, to discuss the extraordinary circumstances of this not-so-traditional school year and to grant school districts the flexibility needed to educate our students without the constraints of state assessments and other mandated requirements. The Lamar County School Board met and approved several changes to our board policies. Our students are always our number one priority, and we believe these policy changes demonstrate our commitment to serving students and families during these challenging times.

In order to calculate a students' final average their 4th term average will equal their 3rd term average. Teachers may use participation and completed work by the student during the distance learning time to adjust a student’s 4th term average. A student’s 4th term average cannot be lower than their 3rd term average.

Ninth – Twelfth Grades:

Instruction and Grading:

·       Students who have an average of 60 or higher in a course taken during the second semester will receive a Carnegie Unit for the course. 

·       If a student is enrolled in a .5 credit course during the fourth nine weeks, he or she will be given every opportunity to complete the course requirements (digital learning/paper packets). 

·       If a student is enrolled in a .5 credit course for the fourth nine weeks, he or she will be given the opportunity to drop the course by May 15th and take it again at a later date.

·       All dual credit courses have transitioned to online courses. Students enrolled in these courses must continue to complete the assignments online and meet the requirements outlined by the colleges.

·       Any student who was assigned remediation work for the third nine weeks will be given the opportunity to complete the work, and grades will be updated. All remediation work is due on or before May 1st.

·       All students will be given every opportunity to successfully pass the core content in all semester, full-credit courses in which they are currently enrolled. Grades for fourth nine weeks will be utilized as learning opportunities and can only improve a student’s average, not hurt it.

·       Entering Freshmen Course Placement Criteria

o   Semester Algebra (1 credit)

·       Final grade in 8th grade math of 95 or above

o   Year-long Algebra I

·       Final grade in 8th grade math of 80 or higher

* Students not meeting the criteria above will be placed in Foundations of Algebra

o   Biology I

·       Final grade in 8th Grade Science of 80 or above

* Students not meeting the criteria above will be placed in Introduction to Biology

o   Honors English I

·       Final grade in 8th grade ELA of 90 or above

* Students not meeting the criteria above will be placed in Year-Long English I

Assessment:

·       The U.S. History, Biology I, Algebra I, and English II end-of-course assessments will not be administered.

·       If a student is currently enrolled in one of these four classes and he or she passes the course, the student will not be required to pass the assessment for graduation.

·       If a student has previously passed the course, but not the assessment, he or she will not be required to pass the assessment in order to graduate.

·       The English Language Proficiency Test (ELPT) will not be administered.

·       The Career Planning and Assessment System (CPAS) will not be administered.

During this challenging time, our goal is to enact policies that error on the side of the individual students. We hope that intent is evident in these policy changes. If you have any questions about your child's progress, please email your teacher, counselor, or principal. They will be glad to help you through this process.