Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Grading Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Salem School Board hears first reading of revised grading policy, high school pilot and stakeholder feedback
Summary
The board received a first reading of proposed updates to policy IKA on grading systems, heard a presentation from a high‑school team about a rubric/competency pilot and agreed to expand stakeholder feedback before any vote or implementation timeline is set.
The Salem School Board held a first reading April 15 of proposed updates to Policy IKA, the district grading policy, focusing on high‑school grading, rubric‑based scoring and how final grades will be calculated and communicated to colleges and families.
Assistant Superintendent for Academics and Support Angela Markley introduced the policy draft and said the board packet includes a redlined two‑page proposal that focuses on a 4‑point competency conversion for final grades at the high‑school level. "The policy previously simply provided the associated letter grade with the percentage scale," Markley said. The proposed change moves a 4‑point conversion into earlier calculation steps so rubrics and percentage scores can both be incorporated in a consistent final grade.
A team from Salem High School provided the board with research and stakeholder input. Humanties Director Steven Goyette and Director of School Counseling Nicole Burke described outreach to other New Hampshire high schools and to college admissions offices. Burke said colleges typically recalculate GPAs to suit their admissions systems and rely on school profiles and transcripts to interpret local grading practices. "They were very comfortable with interpreting final course grades as long as we did our due diligence and explaining what that meant," Burke said.
Board members asked for more stakeholder engagement and cautioned against rushing implementation. Several members — including Attorney Bernard Campbell and board member Kelly Moss — said they want broader input from parents and students beyond the pilot cohort of 52 teachers, and they asked staff to return with additional analyses and a timeline before any vote. Campbell said he was "not prepared to take any final action on this for quite a while," and called for more outreach to parents, students and other teachers.
Staff described an immediate outreach plan: Markley and principal Jeff Dennis will present the recommendations to all high‑school teachers, and Dennis said the district will sample students across advisories (3–5 advisories per grade) and survey parents to gather broader feedback. The pilot group comprises 52 teachers; staff will provide the board with raw survey data on request. Dennis said the team will use consistent prompts and a note taker for advisory sessions to capture student feedback.
Board members asked specific operational questions: how midyear grades will be reported (staff said midyear grades are a snapshot of work completed to date), whether AP and honors weighting will be included (staff indicated the handbook already lists weighting and that the board could consider adding policy language), and whether changes would affect college admissions (college contacts told district staff they can interpret alternative grading as long as the school profile and legend are clear).
No vote was taken; this was a first reading. Staff said they will return with further stakeholder feedback, suggested policy language for AP/honors weighting if desired, and an implementation timeline. Several board members expressed skepticism about implementing a new final‑grade system by the coming fall without more work; staff said they would present timelines and feasibility at upcoming meetings.
