The controversial topic of the reduction of credits in order to graduate has been swirling around Bethel Park for some time now.  However, the School Board has merely mentioned that the State only mandates 21 credits in order to graduate.  Therefore, the School Board has never specifically indicated or recommended the reduction of credits from 27 to 21.

But, the underlying question remains on the grounds of the freshly constructed high school: is it a possibility that Bethel Park may reduce the credits from 27 to 21 in order to graduate?  Many parents and students are scratching their heads as they read numerous articles in the paper claiming that this could be a possibility in the near future.  More importantly, the distance between the administration building and the grounds of the High School are divided by Black Hawk Drive, which symbolizes the clear difference in thoughts between parents/students and the School Board regarding this issue.

Recently, Ms. Janet O’Rourke, Director of Secondary Education and previous principal at Neil Armstrong Middle School, shed light upon this controversial matter.

The first topic that Ms. O’Rourke addressed was that the board is not looking at a large reduction of credits, which means the Board will most likely not drop to 21 credits.  The School Board is looking to drop the credits to either 24 or 25.

“Bethel Park High School mandated 25 credits in order to graduate just four or five years ago, and there wasn’t any concern about the standard and the rigor,” Ms. O’Rourke said. “Many of the schools in the area have less credit requirements than the 24 or 25 we [administration] would be looking at.”

Clearly, reducing the credits to 24 or 25 opens up a wide opportunity for higher level students that are currently involved in science labs to enroll in electives to explore their interests.  Conversely, students don’t have to drop their textbooks, binders, and pencils when they hit the 24 or 25 credit mark.  Ms. O’Rourke and the administration encourages students to seek and pursue their career interests after the 24 or 25 credit mark by enrolling in half year or full year electives.  If we have this brand new, gorgeous high school filled with stupendous technology, why not utilize it?  Students can explore intriguing courses like video production instead of being stuck in the classroom all day.  This is extremely advantageous to students, because they usually get bogged down with honors and AP courses during the year.

However, by reducing the credits, the administration may send the wrong message to students, as students might think expectations are lowered.

A negative impact about the credit reduction, which is addressed by Ms. O’Rourke, is that “if we are reducing graduation credits then we are reducing our expectations.  And, that’s not true at all, but I think people hear that and automatically believe that we are lowering the standard; the standard stays high, and in fact with the school-work and school-career piece I think we are going to increase the standard on students.”

This statement by Ms. O’Rourke is spot on, as students, with the reduction of credits, will have more time to participate in experiences and opportunities outside of school like mentoring programs and even shadowing potential career prospects.  Therefore, the reduction of credits will give the students more flexibility in their schedule, as almost 300 students at BPHS don’t have lunches.  But, a critical question emerges from Ms. O’Rourke’s statement.  How can the School Board and Administration prevent students from enrolling in too many study halls instead of taking advantage of alluring electives, mentoring programs, and job shadowing?

“I think administratively we need to come up with some very direct expectations that you’re not permitted to have more than so many study halls a year,” Ms. O’Rourke said.

Additionally, Ms. O’Rourke said, “About 71% of the students at Bethel Park High School have been graduating beyond the 27 credits.”

The discussion about the diminutive reduction of credits was sparked by the School Board mainly because of the Keystones and flexibility for students to engage in mentoring opportunities.

“The reduction of credits happen to be able to provide remediation for the Keystones,” Ms. O’Rourke said.

Since the format of the Keystones is new to everyone including students, teachers, and administrators, Ms. O’Rourke suggested that students will have to adapt and the District expects lower test scores.

As Dr. Jansante previously stated in the article entitled “From the Desk of Dr. J: The emergence of the Keystones,” with time better test scores will prevail.

Nonetheless, content areas for the Keystones are math and science, which means students will only have to take three credits of science and math to graduate.  However, if they score poorly on the Keystones, they will be directed into a remediation class.

The District is also looking to reduce the amount of elective credits.  Currently, BPHS has 9.5 elective credits, which will most likely be dropped to 8.5.  Students will still have to take 4 years of English and history.

Ms. O’Rourke also brought up the point that vocational students arrive back at the High School fifth period to take their four core classes: math, science, English, and history.  This means that the vocational students are limited to just core classes and don’t have an option to customize their schedule to explore their interests in elective courses.

Well, what if the vocational students score poorly on the Keystones? Ms. O’Rourke explained, “If they don’t do well on the Keystones, then there is no time in their schedule to provide educational support and we need those skilled laborers in the work force.”

There is a way the Administration can help these students and not be a determent.  Bethel Park provides its students with a prodigious technology education department that is equipped with the latest technology.  The administration doesn’t want to hamper these future carpenters, electricians, and plumbers from reaching their full potential.

The Keystones and flexibility for students aren’t the only culprits for the reduction of credits; there’s a budget issue as well.  Most of the districts surrounding Bethel Park are also stuck in an abyss of financial turmoil.

“There are ways in which we can benefit students in Bethel Park and not take away programming and still be responsible fiscally,” Ms. O’Rourke said. “Because, we do have a budget issue.  Every school district does, Bethel Park’s no different. I don’t think it’s going to be a huge cost savings quite yet, but I think in planning that down the road we can benefit students, yet also be a little less expensive.”

The reduction of credits will propel the district out of the financial crisis that they are wrapped in.  Thus, the suffocation will end and the financial manacles and shackles will be cut off and freed, yet benefiting students at the same time.

However, National Honor Society President and Secretary, Kaitlyn Wagner and Kelly Kolodziej, disagree.  They said, “For the most part, this decision doesn’t benefit the students.  Students aren’t going to push themselves as far as they can.  College is already a culture shock as it is and it’s going to be even worse.  A benefit is that vocational education students could graduate early, go to trade school and become a student apprentice.”

This was addressed by Ms. O’Rourke earlier.  These skilled laborers would be able to “jump start” their career and get hands on experiences in the field.  However, some students may slack by this decision, which is pointed out by Kaitlyn.  Nevertheless, the guidelines for study halls should be addressed by administration.

Along the lines of Bethel Park School District’s financial budget, another controversial topic has been circulating around the student body and faculty.  How will the Physical Education department be affected by this?  Well, the Board is considering the rearrangement and restructuring of physical education classes.  At the moment, Bethel Park School District’s requirement for phys ed is that a student must participate in gym for a total of four years, as the credit is worth .25 each semester.  However, a critical question has arisen from deep inside the chambers of the Administration Building.

Can the District’s requirements be skewed so the students only have to take gym class for 2 years?  As a matter of fact, the Board is cogitating about changing the credit value from .25 to .5.  As the pot is churning, the Board realizes that the State only mandates that a student participates in gym class for a total of one credit in order to graduate.  This is a bombshell to faculty members across the District, as Bethel Park boasts about its premier top-of-the-line Physical Education department, its dome-like basketball court and arena, and its state-of-the-art equipment that encompasses the five components of physical fitness: cardiovascular, muscular endurance, muscular strength, flexibility, and body composition.

In addition to faculty members’ shocked state, some students are distraught because gym gives them the opportunity to drop their pens and notebooks and become active with other peers to better their health.  However, the transition from .25 credits to .5 credits is no surprise to other school districts in the area.  Schools like Mt. Lebanon only require students to take gym their freshman and sophomore years; their physical education piece is worth .5 in terms of credits.

Ms. O’Rourke said: “I think we should treat phys ed the same way we treat other electives that if it’s a semester course then it counts as half a credit.  The requirement for physical education is one credit, so the students coming up could legitimately be done with phys ed after their sophomore year and take it as an elective junior or senior year.  Once again, it provides flexibility in the students’ schedules, the students can still choose to take it if it’s an interest for them, and it’s a little bit of a cost savings for the District down the road.”

The various gym teachers at BPHS are the cornerstones of the fitness and sport programs that surmount expectations and domineer area and state records.  Hopefully, the School Board is not intransigent and willing to compromise, so valuable gym teachers will not be let go if students are only required to enroll in two years of gym classes for one semester a year.  The situation still remains unknown, like a hangnail teetering on the edge of a finger; the suspense will be prevalent until the School Board comes to a finalized decision.

Remember, if the reduction of credits and rearrangement of gym classes occurs then it will only be effective for the incoming freshman.

So, there it is.  The District is looking into adjustments in how they arrange and structure the credits here at Bethel Park High School.  Nonetheless, any informed decision the School Board makes is weighed by the pros and cons.  However, students, faculty members, and parents should take a stand and formulate their own position.  If plausible, attend a School Board meeting and voice your opinion.

The pressure is on as this decision by the School Board will impact a long line of students down the road.