The Indiana Department of Education on Wednesday made significant changes to the planned overhaul of the high school diploma system. Among other things, all graduates will now be offered only an undergraduate diploma.
The announcement follows Waves of criticism by Indiana teachers, parents and students against previous diploma proposals that would have largely excluded certain course requirements, such as in history, foreign languages and fine arts.
Representatives of several colleges and universities in Indiana also warned that the previously proposed high school diplomas did not meet the university admission requirements.
The new diploma model, discussed Wednesday at the State Board of Education’s monthly meeting, has addressed those concerns and has support from the leadership of Ball State, Indiana, Indiana State and Purdue universities, as well as Ivy Tech Community College.
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Diploma comparison 8.13.24
Under the updated draft, students can earn “seals of readiness” for enrollment, employment or enlistment that correspond to their future path of further higher education, professional life or military service.
For each readiness category there are two possible seals: Award and Award Plus.
The basic diploma differs slightly from the current Core 40 diploma and requires 42 Credits instead of 40. Students can choose additional courses to meet the special seal requirements.
Depending on the curriculum, students can earn between 56 and 64 credit points.
Breaking the six seals
Course offerings as well as recognized part-time learning and training can lead to the acquisition of seals.
If a student wants to attend a four-year college, he or she generally needs to enroll Seal of Honor, according to IDOE representatives. The requirements for this seal correspond to the existing academic honors diploma, which 35% of students currently earn.
Those working toward the Honor Seal for enrollment must earn additional credits in foreign languages, social studies, math, and science. Students must earn a grade of C or better in all courses and certain scores on AP or other college exams.
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Letter of support
To go a step further, the Honors Plus designation would require students to earn an associate degree or equivalent in addition to 100 hours of work-study hours to enroll.
If a student wants to enter the world of work directly, he or she is likely to seek employment Seal of honor.
For this option, they would need a market-oriented degree or three career and technical education courses, 100 hours of work-based learning, skills development and meeting an attendance goal.
The Employment Honors Plus label awards additional qualifications or degrees and increases the number of work-related learning hours to 650.
Seals are optional, but students who receive one automatically meet the Completion paths Requirements – which must be met in order to obtain a high school diploma.
What happens next?
State education officials said the diploma plan will be posted on the state registry, which will trigger a new 30-day comment period. During that time, the state Board of Education is expected to hold several in-person hearings. Comments can also be submitted online.
However, changes may still be made after the comment period has expired and before final adoption by the Board of Directors.
Under a Law The state of Indiana must implement new diploma requirements by December because lawmakers are passing this law in 2023.
Schools could choose to offer the new diplomas as early as the 2025-26 school year. The new diplomas will apply to all Hoosier students starting in the class of 2029 who will enter eighth grade in the fall.
Of utmost importance for the new planThe goal of the initiative, according to state officials, is to provide students with maximum “flexibility” in personalizing their learning paths and experiences, including college courses that can be taken while still in high school and the opportunity to count internships, apprenticeships, military experience and other work-related learning experiences toward their graduation requirements.
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