Senator Proposing Fix To '18 High School Graduation Crisis In Senate Version Of Budget

Next year’s graduating high school senior must get a good score over seven different final tests or on a college entrance exam, or earn an industry credential. As many as 47,000 high school juniors are potentially on track to fail to meet those standards. An amendment that may be attached to the budget in the Senate seeks to help those students.Sen. Peggy Lehner (R-Kettering) says she’s proposing seniors who can’t meet those standards do two of these things: have a 93% attendance rate, get a 2.5 GPA, do a final project, complete 120 hours of community service or work experience with a recommendation, or a college credit plus course. Lehner says lawmakers will be watching for changes in the state test scores. “Last year was the very first time and the passage rate was not good. Now that teachers have a chance to maybe better prepare students for it, they’re more comfortable with the format, etc., we’re hoping that we’re going to see those test results increase.”Lehner says employers were complaining graduates didn’t have basic skills, so the rigor of K-12 education has to be increased. Copyright 2017 The Statehouse News Bureau. To see more, visit The Statehouse News Bureau.