Board approves reduced graduation‑credit pathway for some alternative‑education seniors in class of 2025

The Pomona Unified School District Board of Education voted Jan. 15 to authorize the superintendent to approve individualized reductions in graduation requirements for students enrolled in the district’s alternative education programs for the graduating class of 2025.

The resolution, presented as Resolution No. 15, directs the superintendent or designee to evaluate and approve modifications to graduation pathways at Park West and Vejar continuation schools so that qualifying students can graduate under an individualized assessment aligned with California Department of Education guidelines. The board approved the measure in a recorded vote: the motion passed with three votes in favor and two abstentions.

District staff said the change responds to a small cohort of students who entered alternative programs behind on credits and would benefit from a tailored sequence of courses. Staff noted that the State of California’s minimum high‑school credit requirement is 130 credits; Pomona Unified’s comprehensive diploma policy has historically required more — generally 220 credits for comprehensive sites. Under the authorized pathway, students at eligible alternative sites could complete a reduced 180‑credit pathway while meeting the state minimum and other academic requirements set by the district’s individualized assessment process.

Presenters said the change is explicitly limited to the class of 2025 seniors at the specified alternative education sites and is intended to align Pomona’s continuation‑site options with practices used in other California districts. Staff described how counselors would evaluate students’ prior coursework, program identifiers (for example, foster youth), and available instructional sequences (quarterly schedules, summer school) to determine whether an individual student meets the criteria for the reduced pathway.

Board members asked how the policy applies to students who finish in December, whether the reduced pathway affects college or military eligibility and whether pandemic disruption motivated the change. Staff said the resolution applies to the current class of 2025; students who complete requirements in a later December would typically be part of the following school year’s graduating class. Staff reiterated that graduates from the reduced pathway receive an earned high‑school diploma and are eligible for postsecondary options, and they said pandemic disruptions were a factor in the district’s review of graduation pathways.

The resolution passed after discussion and clarifying questions about eligibility and implementation. Staff and board members also discussed plans to examine broader district graduation requirements in future policy work.