Port Washington educators propose major revisions to Schreiber High School grading system

At the April meeting of the Port Washington Union Free School District curriculum committee, a subcommittee of Schreiber High School educators presented a set of recommendations to overhaul the high school's grading system, saying the current lookup-table process is confusing for families and can create uneven incentives for students.

Craig Weiss, assistant principal at Schreiber High School and co-chair of the grading subcommittee, said the group recommends four primary changes: weight each of the four quarters equally (25 percent each), add a third band within letter grades (A+, A, A- and comparable B/C bands), move the district's nonweighted GPA scale to 4.3 and apply a 0.3 weighting for honors and AP courses (producing a proposed weighted top of 4.6), and put both weighted and unweighted GPAs on the transcript. The presentation also recommends removing longstanding transcript code grades (E and F variants), consolidating WP/WF notations to a single W for withdrawals, and ending the practice of treating finals as a separate "fifth quarter."

The committee framed the proposals as steps to increase transparency and alignment with peer districts and colleges. "There is no timeline on implementing the recommendations that you're gonna learn about today," said Dr. Shields, who asked the committee to present the proposal to the public. Weiss told the committee the recommendations grew from work begun in 2018 and resumed after COVID, and from consultations with teachers, administrators, students and college-admissions staff.

Why it matters: The proposals would change how grades convert to GPA and how students and colleges see course rigor. Presenters said the current system requires teachers and families to consult multiple tables to convert quarterly letters to point values and then to a final year grade, which can produce seemingly counterintuitive results when quarter weights are uneven. The presenters said unequal quarter weights can advantage students whose stronger work occurs in heavier-weighted quarters and can discourage students from taking unweighted electives.

What the presentation said about current and proposed mechanics: Under the existing system, presenters said, quarter weights are roughly 20 percent, 26 percent, 32 percent and 22 percent (presenters cited approximate percentages) and the district uses a multi-table conversion from quarterly letters to cumulative points. The committee's proposal flattens quarter weight to 25 percent each, eliminates the internal 'code' failing grades that have fallen out of use, and replaces the WP/WF distinction with a single W for withdrawn. Presenters recommended a three-band letter scheme (for example, A+, A, A-) to increase differentiation within grades and to better mirror common college transcript conventions.

On GPA, presenters said the district's current nonweighted top is 4.5 and weighted top 5.5; the proposal would adopt a 4.3 nonweighted top with a +0.3 increment for honors and AP courses so that the weighed top is 4.6. Presenters also recommended showing both weighted and unweighted GPA on the high school transcript, a change they said is already adopted by the majority of neighboring districts and requested by some college admissions offices.

College admissions and external alignment: Presenters said college admissions officers typically recalculate or interpret GPAs on their own scales and rely on course titles and a school's profile to understand rigor. "We have many applicants with different GPA types, so we recalculate the GPA on our own scale," Weiss said he was told by a university admissions representative; committee members said that clarity in the school profile is essential for admissions officers to understand any change. Presenters also said many colleges will look at course titles (AP, honors, dual-enrollment) and that providing clear transcript explanations should address most admissions concerns.

Public comments and concerns: Dozens of parents and community members spoke after the presentation. Key concerns included implementation timing and fairness for students already in high school, possible effects on mental health and competitiveness, alignment with the middle school, and whether the proposal would discourage students from taking electives that are unweighted.

Multiple speakers asked for an implementation plan that avoids disadvantaging students who would see their numeric GPA change mid‑career. One parent urged the committee to roll changes in only for incoming classes; another suggested showing both the old and new GPAs during any transition period. The committee acknowledged the technical constraints: presenters said the district is migrating to Infinite Campus and needs to confirm what the student information system can support, including whether it can run multiple GPA calculations concurrently.

Special education and student supports: Several commenters asked how the changes would affect students with individualized education programs (IEPs) and whether increased granularity could worsen anxiety for students who closely monitor decimals. Presenters said the committee considered those concerns and that professional development for teachers, guidance counseling, and phased implementation would be part of future planning.

No vote; next steps: The committee did not take a formal vote. Presenters and committee members asked for community feedback and said administrators and teachers will reconvene to decide which recommendations to adopt and how. Dr. Shields reiterated that the presentation was a step in a longer process and that "there is no timeline on implementing the recommendations"; committee members said implementation could take months or years and that they would coordinate with guidance, technology and teachers to design a transition that minimizes harm to current students.

Ending: The curriculum committee closed the public-comment portion after the presentation and said it will carry the topic forward for future discussion and planning. The group emphasized that any final change will be described in the school profile and communicated to families and college contacts so admissions officers can interpret transcripts.