Granby School Officials Reverse Decision on 11th Grade Honors English

After listening to the concerns expressed by parents and members of the Granby Board of Education, school officials reversed their decision and will include 11th grade Honors English in the high school curriculum for the 2012-13 school year.

The decision to eliminate the course was made by Superintendent of Schools Alan Addley and high school administrators a couple of weeks ago, though the news took parents and school board members by surprise when they learned of the plan at the board’s Feb. 1 meeting.

Addley said that the school board’s meeting Wednesday evening that the Honors English class would be included in next year’s school curriculum after determining that parents and school board members had not been given adequate notice of the course’s elimination.

“I’ve realized that there was not advance notice to the board or parents,” Addley said while accepting responsibility for what he identified as a lapse in communication. “It’s not the way we operate. The right thing to do is to change the decision.”

Honors English is considered more challenging and in-depth than academic English, and carries a slightly weighted grade, like an Advanced Placement course, but without the year-end test to qualify for college credit. Reinstating the course is cost neutral, Addley said.

The move was applauded by parents, who said that Honors English served as a perfect bridge for students who wanted a greater challenge than a regular academic course, but not the rigor of Advanced Placement English.

“Taking two or three AP classes in high school demonstrates readiness and is a good thing if your student is ready,” said Granby parent Maggie Percival, who has a daughter who will be entering her junior year at Granby Memorial High next year. “But colleges are looking for students who balance their lives with extracurricular activities and outside interests beyond the classroom.”

Percival went on to say that while the goal of school officials may be to have each student enroll in at least one AP course in high school, such a decision should ultimately rest with the student.

“AP is not for everyone,” Percival said. “I feel very strongly that this is a personal decision that should not be forced upon these kids.”

Parent Jamie Ranicar agreed with Percival, stating that his son said that he was not prepared for taking an AP course, but wanted something more demanding than academic English. Ranicar said that his son does a lot of extracurricular activities that prevent the him from devoting the time it would take to keep up with the workload of an AP course.

“These guys are dealing with a lot of stuff,” Ranicar said.

The course may just have a one-year reprieve, however, as Addley said that school administrators would revisit the issue at some point during the next school year.

In other business, Addley said that the Board of Finance had put a cap on increasing the mill rate to 2 percent for the 2012-13 budget, meaning that the school’s budget increase would be capped somewhere around 1 percent.

Addley said that he was satisfied with that projection and that the school district was well-positioned to stay within the parameters set forth by the finance board.

The school board during its three-hour meeting also continued its discussion concerning the possible $100,000 small capital improvements expenditure on upgrading the wireless network and infrastructure at the high school and middle school. No action was taken at the time.

In addition, the school board also heard presentations on academic coaching models from Deborah Pattison, an indoor air quality report from Harry Traver and the annual facilities report from Tom Steinke, director of facilities.

The next school board meeting is scheduled for March 7.