This document provides an overview of the policies and procedures schools should consider in certifying June graduates. For additional support implementing the guidance described in this document, contact your network’s academic policy point.
Timeline for Certifying Seniors and Graduating Students in GRDT
The timeline below includes important deadlines for certifying June graduates. These deadlines are designed to ensure that June graduates are certified and entered into the appropriate data systems in a timely manner. Schools must adhere to these deadlines to ensure that graduates are correctly reported for the purposes of State and City accountability measures. A complete calendar of end-of-year
deadlines is available here.
May - June: Prepare for certification
o Ensure student transcripts are up to date, including:
All previously completed course grades and exam scores All transfer credits
All credit-by-exam
All Regents exam waivers (“WA”), appeals (“WG”), and alternatives (“WX”) o Use STARS Graduation Analysis Report to track student progress towards graduation. o Ensure that school-based systems and structures are in place to certify graduating
students.
June 11-20 (Regents week): Enter final grades for all courses and exams as they are available. Non-diploma granting programs (YABCs, District 79 programs, and home and hospital
instruction) should begin pre-certifying graduates and transferring them back to diploma-granting schools in HSRE.
June 11: GRDT opens.
June 14: Deadline for submitting UGNO requests for all outstanding cohort adjustments. June 26: Deadline for non-diploma-granting programs to pre-certify graduates and transfer them back to diploma-granting schools in HSRE.
June 28: Deadline for discharging graduates in GRDT; UGNO closes.
July 12: GRDT closes; no additional June graduates may be entered after this date.
Certifying Students for Graduation
Certifying high school seniors for graduation is one of the most important procedures performed at a high school. In certifying a student for graduation, the principal is attesting that the student has
completed all requirements for graduation and has earned a high school diploma from the school. High schools should establish and maintain protocols reflecting the significance and legality of the process of senior certification, including the following:
Submitting any outstanding transcript updates, including transfer credit and State-approved alternative exams
Identifying potential graduates and their anticipated diploma types
Notifying students and their families of students’ status as potential graduates or non-graduates Registering potential non-graduates for additional courses or planning for credit recovery Submitting a list of graduates and discharge codes and endorsements to the appropriate staff member for data entry
Preparing diplomas, including principal’s signature and appropriate seal Distributing and keeping receipts of report cards, transcripts, and diplomas
Schools may use and adapt the templates provided in the Senior Certification Guide to support the process of certifying students for graduation.
Graduation Requirements
Schools may refer to the High School Academic Policy Reference Guide and supplementary resources provided on the Academic Policy Resources page for guidance on graduation requirements and credit accumulation policies. All students should be encouraged to pursue the most rigorous diploma option available.
Schools should be aware of recent change to graduation requirements and diploma options for eligible students planning to graduate in June. These changes include:
An expansion of the Safety Net for students with disabilities: eligible students may graduate with a local diploma with one or two Regents exam scores of 45-54 in social studies or science, provided that each score of 45-54 is compensated by a Regents exam score of 65 or higher and that students fulfill specific eligibility requirements. Schools may use this calculator to determine whether students’ Regents exam scores qualify for this option. Students with disabilities who fulfill all course and exam requirements through the compensatory option may be discharged with a local diploma.
Graduating Students in GRDT
GRDT is the official source of data on June graduates and includes important information about students’ fulfillment of graduation requirements. For June 2013, GRDT includes updated endorsement codes (“DPL TYP”) override codes (“OV CD”). Directions for using these fields are outlined below and on the Stars wiki.
Name Description
DISC Code
Discharge Code
Enter the graduation code (Table Code 260)
Upon saving the discharge code the CR, DR, RG will populate. The code will not save if requirements are not met, the error description will appear at the bottom of the function.
CRD REQ
Credit
Distribution by Subject
Requirement
Will return “Y” if the student meets the credit distribution by subject requirement of the entered graduation
code. If returned with “N,” student does not meet the requirements of the code and will therefore not be
discharged with that code unless this flag is overridden. See below for more information.
OV CD
DR Override Code
Enter a reason for overriding the “N” flag of the “CRD REQ” column.
EXM REQ
Passing Regents Exam score
requirement
Will return “Y” if the student meets the Pass Regents Exam scores requirement of the entered graduation
code. If returned with “N,” student does not meet the requirements of the entered graduation code and will
therefore not be discharged with that code unless this flag is overridden. See below for more information.
Please note that Consortium high schools have been added to an exception list for all exams except for the English Regents.
OV CD
RG Override Code
Enter a reason for overriding the “N” flag of the “EXM REQ” column. Valid reasons are as follows, policies for these exam codes can be found in section B of the 2013 Academic Policy Guide
DPL TYP Diploma Type Enter If receiving a special endorsement; (Table Code 208).
PST SEC
Post Secondary Code
Enter the students' post high school (post-secondary) plans after graduation, if known. This will assist in the College Verification (CVER) process (Table Code 181). Note that the CVER process focuses on a students' actual secondary enrollment/plan, schools will get credit on their Progress Report for only these outcomes.
CLG DEG (formally OTH DEG)
GRDT Diploma Endorsement Codes
Starting in June 2013, diploma endorsements will be entered using the numerical codes below. Schools should select the code that best describes the endorsement(s) that the student earned. Information on these endorsements is available in the High School Academic Policy Reference Guide. Detailed
information on the new math and science endorsements for the class of 2013 is available here. Seals for the math and science endorsements may be requested from your network academic policy point.
Code Endorsement(s) 1 Arts
2 CTE 3 CTE + Arts 5 Math 6 Science
7 Math + Science 8 Arts + Science 9 Arts + Math
10 Arts + Science + Math 11 CTE + Science
12 CTE + Math
13 CTE + Science + Math 14 CTE + Arts + Science 15 CTE + Arts + Math
16 CTE + Arts + Math + Science
Endorsement Requirements:
Students earn endorsements by completing additional credits and/or exams on top of minimum diploma requirements. See the Academic Policy Reference Guide for complete information on the requirements for these endorsements.
Arts: Student has earned 10 credits in a single arts discipline and has passed the corresponding Arts assessment.
CTE: Student has completed specific courses and exams as part of an approved CTE program.
Mastery in Math (“Math”): Student is earning an Advanced Regents diploma and has scored 85 or higher on all three math Regents exams.
GRDT Override Codes
The GRDT override codes have been revised for June 2013 to reflect additional information about students’ fulfillment of graduation requirements. Consult your network academic policy point for guidance on when to use these codes.
Code Definition Description
Policy Guidance (HS Reference Guide) Credits
A
IEP- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has an IEP indicating that the LOTE requirement is not appropriate due to a disability.
Page 6, footnote 11
B
Adv. Art- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has earned an Advanced Regents diploma with an Arts endorsement and is exempt from the 6-credit LOTE requirement.
Page 11
C
Adv. CTE- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has earned an Advanced Regents diploma with a CTE endorsement and is exempt from the 6-credit LOTE requirement.
Page 11
D Distribution Override
The student fulfilled a distribution requirement through a course coded in a different subject area.
Used for Stars coding errors
Exams
J
IEP- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has an IEP indicating that the LOTE requirement is not appropriate due to a disability.
Page 6, footnote 11
K
Adv. Art- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has earned an Advanced Regents diploma with an Arts endorsement and is exempt from the LOTE exam requirement.
Page 11
L
Adv. CTE- Exempt from LOTE Requirement
The student has earned an Advanced Regents diploma with a CTE endorsement and is exempt from the LOTE exam requirement.
Page 11
M Safety Net- 504
The student has a 504 plan specifying Safety Net eligibility, allowing him/her to earn a local diploma.
Page 12
N
Safety Net- Declassified
The student was declassified in grades 8 through 12, but the last IEP specified Safety Net eligibility, allowing him/her to earn a local diploma.
Page 12
O Safety Net- IEP
The student has an IEP, allowing him or her to earn a local diploma.
Page 12
P
Cohort Override- “A” THRU “M”
The student’s actual 9th grade entry year is 2007-08 or prior, allowing him/her to earn a local diploma.
Page 11
Q Exam Appeal
The student has successfully appealed a Regents exam score of 62-64 through the superintendent.
Appendix C
R
Exam Waived- Transfer Student
The student transferred to NYS high school for the first time in grade 11 or 12 and is waiving the Global and/or science Regents.
Participation in Commencement Ceremonies
Per NYCDOE policy, high school students must meet graduation requirements to participate in their schools’ graduation ceremonies. In addition, a student who is on suspension at the time of graduation or other commencement-related activities may be prohibited from attending when he or she poses a threat of violence or disruption to the event; the exclusion must be proportionate to the infraction committed. It may also be possible to bar a student from a commencement ceremony when his or her conduct has been particularly egregious, and where the student has previously been advised in writing. Students and families should be notified of policies for participation on graduation ceremonies. For more information, see http://schools.nyc.gov/Offices/OFEA/commencementceremonies.
Programming Students for Fall 2013
To prepare for the 2013-14 school year, schools should activate their Stars course codes for the next school year and designate their terms and marking periods no later than June 28th.
Schools can activate Fall 2013 STARS Course Codes by:
o Copying the 2012-2013 Code Deck via Copy Code deck in Stars Client
o Loading course code starter packs via Custom Report 6.59 in Stars webpages o Creating course codes via the Course Editor in Stars Client
