GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
- Credit Distribution- Classes of 2025 and 2026
- Credit Distribution - Class of 2027 and Beyond
- Earning Credit
- Early Graduation and/or Early Admission to College
- Grading System
- District Performance Standards
- Power School Parent Portal
Credit Distribution- Classes of 2025 and 2026
A student must satisfactorily earn a minimum of 25 credits and have met the credit distribution requirements. Students must also meet performance standards in literacy, mathematics, and science.
Pending WHPS Board of Education approval.
A graduate must earn 25 total units inclusive of the following.
A. Humanities (9 units)
- English (4 units) Social Studies (3 units)
- inclusive of 1 unit of World History
- inclusive of 1 unit of US History
- inclusive of ½ unit of American Government/Civics - World Language (1 unit)
- Arts (½ unit)
- Humanities Elective (½ unit)
B. Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (9 units)
- Mathematics (3 units)
- Science (3 units)
- inclusive of 1 unit of Physical Science
- inclusive of 1 unit of Life Science - STEM Electives (3 units)
C. Wellness Education (2 units)
- inclusive of 1 unit of Wellness
- inclusive of 1 unit of Wellness Elective
D. Electives (5 units)*
TOTAL: 25 credits
*any subjects chosen outside of the basic requirements for graduation
Legal References:
Public Act 17-42, An Act Concerning Revisions to the High School Graduation Requirements
Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-5c, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-14n, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-16b, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-221a, Conn. Gen. Stat. § 10-223a
Credit Distribution - Class of 2027 and Beyond
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A student must satisfactorily earn a minimum of 25 credits and have met the credit distribution requirements. Students must also meet performance standards in literacy, mathematics, and science. Pending WHPS Board of Education approval. A graduate must earn 25 total units inclusive of the following.
*any subjects chosen outside of the basic requirements for graduation |
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Earning Credit
Credit is granted on a semester basis. For each semester of successful work in a subject meeting five times per week .5 credit is granted. For subjects meeting less than five times a week, such as Wellness courses, .25 credit is granted.
WHPS students successfully completing either Algebra 1 or programming equivalent to year one of a high school World Language course taken at the middle school level, may have these courses recognized for elective credit on their high school transcript with a grade of PASS.
On occasion, students may request taking a course outside of their home school and apply it to the graduation requirements. A request for external course credit must be submitted and approved prior to enrollment in any such course work. Grades earned in external courses are recorded as PASS on student transcripts and are not factored into the GPA.
No credit will be given when a student repeats a subject where credit is already earned except in the performing music courses, in special work experience programs and in other individual cases with prior approval.
Note: Attendance policy violations may result in the loss of credit. Attendance violations involving the potential loss of credit are subject to administrative review. See the student handbook for details of the attendance policy.
Minimum Credit Requirements for Grade Advancement
Class of 2023 and thereafter:
- Grade 10: 5 credits
- Grade 11: 11 credits
- Grade 12: 17 credits
Early Graduation and/or Early Admission to College
It is expected that most students will graduate from high school after having attended for four years (grades 9-12) and having earned the required number of credits.
A student planning to graduate by the end of the sophomore year should inform their school counselor by the end of his/her sophomore year. A formal written request to graduate early must be submitted in writing to the principal. Specific details outlining the reasons for this request must be clearly indicated. Upon approval, the student is moved into the senior class and must meet all graduation requirements.
Grading System
The following grading system is in use. Please note plus and minus is not computed into GPA.
| Letter Grade | Numerical Equivalent |
| A+ | 97-100 |
| A | 93-96 |
| A- | 90-92 |
| B+ | 87-89 |
| B | 83-86 |
| B- | 80-82 |
| C+ | 77-79 |
| C | 73-76 |
| C- | 70-72 |
| D+ | 67-69 |
| D | 63-66 |
| D- | 60-62 |
| F | 0-59 |
Academic Honors and Grade Point Average (GPA)
At the end of each quarter, students who achieve an average of 3.60 or higher in all credit subjects with no grade below a “C” receive maximum honors (at least five such subjects must be on a letter-grade basis). Those who earn an average of 3.0 to 3.59 on a similar basis receive general honors.
In arriving at averages:
- A = 4
- B = 3
- C = 2
- D = 1
An extra .5 is added to the GPA value for each honors or Advanced Placement course. If an honors and AP course are offered in the same subject, the honors course is then weighted by adding a .25 (i.e. Honors Biology).
A grade of ‘P’ (Pass) does not impact the calculation of GPA, but could impact honor roll eligibility. A grade of ‘D’, ‘F’, ‘Z’ or ‘Inc’ (Incomplete) in any subject will exclude a student from honors.
Students must carry a minimum of 5.0 credits (enrolled in 5 classes per semester) plus Wellness Education per year to be considered both a full-time student and eligible for Honor Roll status. Any independent study work (DIS) would be considered an addition to these minimum requirements.
District Performance Standards
Each local and regional board of education shall specify the basic skills necessary for graduation, and for each graduating class thereafter, and include a process to assess a student's level of competency in such skills. Assessment criteria shall include, but shall not exclusively be based on, the results of the state's mastery examination. West Hartford students must meet Performance Standards Requirements in the areas of literacy, math, science. Students who meet the state benchmarks for college and career readiness will have evidence of this achievement recorded on the test record component of their high school transcript.
A. Literacy - Reading: Students read and comprehend complex texts independently demonstrating proficiency in summarizing, identifying author’s purpose/ text structure, main idea and appropriate evidence, understanding words in context, and analyzing key details. Writing: Students will construct written work that demonstrates an awareness of organizational structure, development of ideas through elaboration and evidence, and application of a formal style including the proper use of standard English conventions.
B. Math: Students solve problems, explain their reasoning, and justify solutions in writing. Students will also demonstrate procedural fluency and conceptual understanding of core mathematical content within the domains of number and quantity, algebraic reasoning, geometry and measurement, data analysis, and patterns, logic, and modeling.
C. Science: Students plan and conduct an investigation or investigate a case study to answer an identified problem. Students analyze data to identify patterns/trends and construct an explanation using evidence.
Meeting the District Performance Standards
A. National and State Examinations: The primary means for students to meet the District Performance Standards in literacy, mathematics and science will be through performance on national and state assessments.
- Students meet the district performance standards by earning a score of 480 on the SAT Evidence Based Reading and Writing Writing Section (EBRW) and a 530 on the mathematics section
- Students earn a 460 on the PSAT Evidence Based Reading and Writing Writing Section (EBRW) and a 510 on the mathematics section
- Students meet the district performance standards by scoring at a proficient level on a set of predetermined subscores in EBRW (History/Social Studies Cross Test-20, Science Cross Test-20, Words in Context -7, Command of Evidence-6) and in mathematics (History/Social Studies Cross Test-20, Science Cross Test-20, Heart of Algebra -7, Problem Solving and Data Analysis -6).
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Students meet the district performance standard in science by earning a score of 3 or higher on the Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) assessment.
B. District Assessments:
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Students meet the District Performance Standard by demonstrating proficiency through a portfolio review of specific assessments in their English, social studies , math and science courses.
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Students meet the District Performance Standard by scoring at proficient or higher on the district proficiency assessments and or projects in their senior year.
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Students meet the District Performance Standard by earning a passing grade in an approved senior year elective in English, math, or science.
Failure to Meet the Graduation Requirements
If a senior is not eligible for graduation with the class due to not earning the minimum required graduation credits and/or performance standards, then the student may:
A. Enroll in summer school and meet the requirements or
B. Enroll in courses pre-approved by the administration and meet the requirement or
C. Make special arrangements for re-testing to meet the performance standard or
D. Return to high school as a fifth year student and meet the requirements
Notification
Families of students in jeopardy of not graduating due to failure to meet the graduation requirements will be notified by January during the student's senior year. Students in danger of not graduating are supported through our tiered interventions. Students who have not met the district performance standards will also be notified pending the release of the state assessment results.
Power School Parent Portal
The Parent Portal is an integrated tool that allows parents to use any computer with Internet access to view specific information about their child/children, including items such as attendance, assignments and grades. We believe that this tool will further enhance the communication between parents and teachers and aid in our partnership as we work to provide the best education possible. If you do not have Internet access at home, please visit any branch of the West Hartford Public Library or other community resource centers where computers are available, such as the Elmwood Community Center.