The Henry County School Board took no action Oct. 1 on a proposed policy that would establish guidelines for students to skip an entire grade.
Human Resources Director Dawn McCray said the whole-grade acceleration policy was presented to the board at its September meeting.
“Just as a reminder the purpose of the policy is to establish a clear equitable and research-based process for considering whole-grade acceleration, also known as grade skipping, for students who demonstrate exceptional academic readiness and the need for instruction beyond their current grade level,” she said.
McCray said the school division currently offers subject-specific acceleration, but not whole-grade acceleration.
Sherry Vestal, of the Blackberry District, recalled seeing a student skip grades years ago when Vestal worked for the school division.
“I saw the child become pretty much a social outcast by going through so many grades and skipping, and she pretty much just sat to herself. So personally, I’m not in favor of this,” Vestal said.
Champ Hardie, of the Ridgeway District, asked whether the proposal was the same as a program already offered by the division.
“No, this would be new. These are policy guidelines if the student met the requirements for whole-grade but do know that we’ve got subject contents specific that they could accelerate. This is just a whole grade, but social issues would be one of the risks for potential concerns,” McCray said.
Chairman Teddy Martin, of the Reed Creek District, said feedback he and Vice Chairman Ben Gravely, of the Iriswood District, received from other board members indicated there was little support for moving forward with the proposal.
“I’m not surprised” the board was not taking action that night, Martin said.
In other matters, the board:
Heard the superintendent’s report.
Approved the consent agenda.
Heard elementary education updates.
Awarded a term contract for architectural and engineering services to RRMM Architects.
Heard committee reports.
