ISLE OF WIGHT — The county School Board changed the grading scale — again.
School Board Chairman David Goodrich had a change of heart Wednesday and introduced a motion to revamp the county’s grading scale after it was changed Jan. 13 following months of debate and research.
The scale Goodrich proposed uses 100-90 points for an A, 89-80 for a B, 79-70 for a C, 69-65 for a D and 64 and below for an F. The scale was approved unanimously.
“I think this is a good move on the part of the board,” said School Board Member George Bradby.
The grading scale has been a source of conversation for Board members and the community. For months, parents have advocated for a grading scale similar to that in use in several school districts, including Williamsburg-James City County, Poquoson, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Surry County and Virginia Beach.
In January, the School Board voted to on a grading scale with 100-91 for an A, 90-82 for a B, 81-74 for a C, 73-65 for a D and 64 and below an F.
A committee of middle and high school principals and district staff will report to the School Board in March with a recommendation for implementing the new scale, either for this school year or for next year.
Parent Judy Morin called for the new scale to be retroactively implemented for this school year.
“(It would) serve the majority of the student body,” she said. “It would help the freshmen all the way to the seniors.”
Also Wednesday, the board met to discuss the qualifications they wanted in the search or a new superintendent. Spokeswoman Katherine Goff shared the results of an online survey that 491 residents took and comments from two community meetings held in early February at which six people spoke.
“The melding of those two gives us the best option,” said School Board Member Herb DeGroft.
Board members haggled over qualifications to use in advertising for the position and settled on six, including education preferences, a background in finance and budgets, strong communication skills, knowledge of special education, motivational skills for teachers and staff and the ability to make decisions in a team setting.
Superintendent Michael McPherson will leave when his contract expires June 30. The School Board hopes to name a new superintendent by mid-June. The board will take applications from Feb. 16-March 18.
