A message from Summit Charter Head of School Kurt Pusch
Dear Summit Families,
In follow-up to my note this morning, I’m writing to update you on the status of Summit’s closure. This afternoon, Governor Cooper announced that the statewide closure of public schools will be extended through the end of the 2019-20 school year.
On account of this updated executive order, Summit’s campus will remain closed and we will extend our remote learning program through May 28, the last day of classes for this school year.
While we had hoped to conclude our school year back on campus and together as a Summit family, Summit stands with this decision and remains committed to serving our state and country’s effort in protecting the health and welfare of our families and communities.
Additionally, in response to the State Board of Education’s newly adopted policy on year-end grading for this year on which I updated you this morning, we are currently finalizing our plans to implement this policy at Summit and will update you by early next week with our plans and procedures in finalizing grades for this school year. Also of note, the State Board of Education has cancelled EOG testing for the 2019-20 school year. AP exams will still be administered in high school following a modified administration.
Specific to high school, Mrs. Bennett will be contacting each of our high school students and families to schedule conferences regarding the specific expectations of implementing this grading policy as it pertains to high school graduation credits and college admissions.
Looking ahead to the reopening of our campus in our next school year, our team continues to prepare for supporting our students’ return to school in August as well as our readiness for any adaptations in our program that may be necessary as this situation evolves.
While we recognize the challenges and limitations of continuing our children’s education through remote learning, I believe that our continued efforts in finishing this school year strong, to the best of our ability, represents an important commitment to uphold with our children.
The circumstances of learning have changed, but we should expect that the standards and expectations that our children will face in their readiness for college and life will remain high. I believe this to be true for all of our children, and especially true for our high school students in their final years of preparation for the rigors of college and careers beyond. May we continue to lean into this time as not only lessons in our children’s academic growth, but also lessons in life through which our children will grow in character.
Summit remains committed to supporting our students and families, and are incredibly grateful for your support.
I believe that, more than anything, this experience and the unbelievable response of our parents and teachers will shape our children to be stronger, wiser, and more resilient as people.
Update from the State: Year-End Grading Policy
Yesterday afternoon Governor Cooper announced that he will be providing an update on the status of school closure later today. As we have more information this afternoon, I will update you on the status of Summit’s school closure.
Also yesterday afternoon, the State Board of Education approved a temporary Year-End Grading Policy to inform grading measures in schools through this period of school closure and remote learning. The grading policy is detailed HERE, and summarized below:
K-5: Students will not receive traditional grades for the year. Instead, they will receive year-end feedback from teachers using a format determined by the school.
6-8: Students will receive a “pass” or “withdraw” grade for the year, where a “withdraw” does not equate to a failing grade, but rather an indication of a lack of evidence of mastery.
A grade of “pass” will be assigned to any student who was passing the course as of March 13 or who worked to improve to the point of passing after March 13 through remote learning. Middle school students taking Math I will have the same grading options as high school students for the course.
9-10: Students will have the option of choosing between a grade of “pass or no credit” or a numeric grade for their spring semester courses.
If a student chooses a numeric grade for the spring semester, the score will be based on the grade they were earning as of March 13 in the class.
If a student was failing a course as of March 13, they have the opportunity to improve their grade through remote learning, otherwise that course will not appear on their high school transcript for credit.
Our administration and faculty will work to develop procedures for implementing this policy in determining student grades for the 4th quarter and will update you with more information by early next week.
While this policy will inform grading procedures for our final quarter at Summit this school year, the importance of this time with our children remains unchanged.
We are grateful for all the time, effort, and love you continue to pour into supporting your children’s learning. I believe that, more than anything, this experience and the unbelievable response of our parents and teachers will shape our children to be stronger, wiser, and more resilient as people.
You all are doing an amazing job.
- Summit Charter Head of School Kurt Pusch