Board reinstates standalone waiver policy allowing limited elective-credit waivers for students with extraordinary circumstances

The Longview School District board approved on first reading Thursday a reinstated Policy 24.18 that allows a waiver of up to two elective credits for students who have made every effort to meet graduation requirements but whose attempts were disrupted by extraordinary circumstances.

The policy language, drawn from model policy, states the waiver is limited to elective credits and does not apply to required core credits such as English, math, science or social studies. A staff review committee at the high school level will evaluate waiver requests and forward recommendations to the superintendent for final review, the board was told. The policy requires a written form and a deadline for requests; the draft sets the deadline at no later than 30 days before the student's scheduled graduation date.

A staff presenter described the policy as a return to a prior standalone rule that had been embedded into other graduation policies during earlier revisions; the presenter said there is no new language beyond what was previously in policy and that the district will retrieve or produce a standard form for families to use. "This is a standalone policy that should be easy for families to find on our policy list and requires a form," the presenter said.

Directors asked for clarifications. One director asked whether the policy would be used for events such as family crisis or bereavement; staff said the intent is to apply the waiver only in extraordinary, beyond-the-student's-control circumstances and only after the student has made substantial effort to earn required credits. A director questioned whether the 30-day deadline is too near graduation; staff said the timing is intended to preserve every opportunity for the student to finish credits through normal processes and that the waiver is a final option.

Board members asked how commonly the waiver is used; staff and the superintendent said they did not have an up-to-date count for Longview. One director said that in a previous district she had experience with two waivers used over eight years.

On the motion to approve the first reading of Policy 24.18, the board recorded an affirmative vote and the motion passed (voice vote: ayes). No numeric breakdown by member name was recorded in the meeting transcript; meeting audio indicated five directors voted in favor at voice vote.

Staff said the policy will reference state legal citations (RCWs) in the legal references section and that the district will draft and publish the waiver form for families and school administrators.