By Leanna Yu and Anjuli Niyogi, Center Spread and News Editor

Following the district-wide decision to carry out virtual learning until the end of the school year,  the issue regarding student grades came into question. The idea of changing the grading scale to Credit/No Credit was proposed to members of the San Mateo Union High School District (SMUHSD) on Friday, April 3rd. SMUHSD called for a Special Board Meeting that was held on Thursday, April 16th to tackle the issue of whether schools should keep letter grades or switch to Credit/No Credit for the spring semester with direction from the Board of Trustees as well as community input. 

The meeting had over 800 viewers through Zoom and Youtube Live and lasted nearly five hours. Superintendent Kevin Skelly and Assistant Superintendent Julia Kempkey introduced the meeting with a presentation that included an overview of the situation, challenges involving students and teachers, and a variety of proposals of grading systems for the Board of Trustees. The presentation regarding coursework covered two main points: 

1. UC systems will suspend the letter grade requirement for A-G courses for the 2020 spring semester. 
2. No student will be penalized in the campus admission review processes for earning passing grades in A-G coursework during the 2020 spring semester. 

Due to concerns on the equity of online learning, four options for a modified grading system were presented to the Board of Trustees and SMUHSD members: student choice for a letter grade or Credit/No Credit, Credit/No Credit for all students, Credit+/Credit/No Credit for all, or Grades with Compassion. Ultimately, Credit/No Credit and Grades with Compassion were the only two heavily debated options.  Following Superintendent Skelly and Assistant Superintendent Kempkey’s presentation, more than 50 community members voiced their opinions to the board members over which choice they preferred. The majority of students, parents, and teachers who spoke were from Burlingame, Aragon, Hillsdale, or San Mateo High School; there were very few voices from Capuchino or Mills High School. 

Mills Student Nicholas Wong (12) and Mills ASB President Hosea Chen (12) both spoke at the Special Board Meeting. Wong, who has taken nine AP courses and is largely involved in the community, argued for Credit/No Credit, stating that “The District should proceed with Credit/No Credit because it brings equity to students with lower socioeconomic status. Those of us who are privileged enough to be here should advocate for those who are unable to.” 

In agreement with Wong’s support for Credit/No Credit, Chen represented his classmates and himself, advocating for a change in the grading system. Chen touched upon the topics of making the most of circumstances, difficulties involving virtual learning, and the equity of Credit/No Credit: “The present circumstances [are] a time for healing. Why not just let this be an opportunity for everyone to take a pause in [their] busy lives and really experience life and relationships for the first time without [our situation] revolving entirely around academics for once? The Credit/No Credit option allows for that.” Additionally, Chen addressed the benefit for students taking AP courses, declaring that “[Virtual learning] is very stressful academically, as those enrolled in AP classes also have AP tests to worry about, which will already be a motivator for us to learn and do the fair amount of work even without letter grades.” 

After five hours of examining possible options and considering community input, the board members voted 3:2 in favor of adopting a Credit/No Credit grading system for the 2020 spring semester. Students who receive No Credit in any classes at the end of the semester will be provided opportunities to master those incomplete subjects over the summer. 

The district’s decision to transition to a Credit/No Credit grading system has been a concern for many students wondering how it would affect those currently enrolled in AP classes that would normally receive grade bumps. All classes taken will still count towards the honor course tallies for AP students, but their GPAs will only be calculated with the grade from the first semester and one additional point. As a result, students’ GPAs will not be affected by the spring semester; only their fall semester GPAs will be accounted for.

**Further updates are being provided through email by Superintendent Skelly and can be accessed at here.