Tucson Unified School District seniors who failed to meet graduation requirements, due in some instances to the failure of district administrators, were told tonight that they would not be able to walk in their graduation ceremonies. The matter of waiving the district’s graduation requirements in order to allow over 100 students to participate in graduation ceremonies did not receive a second motion necessary to bring it up for a vote by the Board.
Adelita Grijalva made the initial motion to put the issue to vote, however none of her fellow Board members would second her motion.
Grijalva’s objections to end social promotion are at the core of her support to allow for a waiver of graduation requirements. If the district had had criteria for promotion into high school, the likelihood that students would need a waiver to graduate would be virtually eliminated.
As a result, the board was left with few options, neither of which was desirable, and both cheated children.
One long time district insider said, “Good, I know it hurts the kids and that is awful, but hopefully those parents will finally tell the district to hold its administrators responsible. They are the ones who should walk…. walk out the doors of the district offices and never come back.”
The presentations made by both parents and students, made clear that school administrators failed to take the necessary steps to inform parents about the testing options available to their children. That same issue was at the heart of most students’ failure to meet requirements last year.
One parents advised the board that it wasn’t until this week that she was notified that her daughter could take the ACT or SAT to replace the AIMS requirement. But she was told, that her daughter would still not be able to walk because the test results would not be available until after the summer graduation ceremony. Her daughter failed to pass the AIMS by one point.
At the same time the district spent millions on technology that staff could not use, many students were using AIMS prep material from 2006.
“Regardless of class grades, the public really only trusts standardized test scores as the measure of academic achievement. The only way to move past this test-based accountability is to restore confidence that a passing grade means the student has met the state and/or national standards for the class. Ending social promotion is a big step in the right direction. Until then, kids who have been pushed forward even though they did not meet standards will continue to have their hearts broken when they fail the standardized tests and can’t graduate,” said Rich Kronberg, founder of Tucsonans United for Sound Districts.
The Board heard from teachers and members of the public who were against social promotion. While no one appeared in favor of the failed policy, in its continuing lack of competence, the Board dropped the issue of social promotion from its agenda last night. They did take the time to discuss the extension of Superintendent Pedicone’s contract, and listen to a report on technology plans.
Abel Morado, one administrator who failed this year and last, was promoted to a Central Office administrative position overseeing all high schools this past spring. Morado’s promotion was the subject of many objections. One observer noted that the district must have a social promotion program in place for administrators.