Anne Arundel County Public Schools Axes Class Rank

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD -- The Anne Arundel County Public Schools board of education has officially changed how its selects valedictorian and salutatorian of each graduating class. The board also voted to eliminate class rank. The changes take effect for students entering the ninth grade for the 2021-2022 school year. The revised policies weren't passed without reservations, however. The board approved the changes with a vote of five to four.

Valedictorians currently are selected based solely upon grade point average. The revised policy states that students who earn summa cum laude honors (weighted grade-point average of 4.3 or higher) after seven high school semesters would be eligible to apply to be class valedictorian or salutatorian. The honors would be based on a student’s character, leadership, scholarship and service. Winners would be selected through a school-based process to be determined by the superintendent.