PLEASE FORWARD THIS PETITION TO ALL OF YOUR CONTACTS - NOT JUST PEOPLE WITH KIDS! This concerns us all, and we ALL vote for the School Board Members! The current method utilized by Spotsylvania County Public Schools (\"Spotsylvania County\")to calculate Grade Point Averages (GPA\'s) devalues student earned grades in comparison with competing Northern Virginia school districts. Spotsylvania County School Board (\"the School Board\") Policy IGAA (Grading Systems) defines the value each numeric grade receives for purposes of GPA calculation. For example, a numeric grade of 93 is assigned a value of 3.0 in Spotsylvania County. But, did you know the same 93 is worth ... a 4.0 in Arlington County; ... a 4.3 in Loudoun County; and ... a 3.5 in Stafford County. Students, this affects you more than anyone else. The grades you earn are your responsibility: time spent studying, overall effort, class attendance, etc., all affect the numeric grade you earn. What is not in your control is the value assigned to that numeric grade and the resulting GPA. Is it fair that your 93 is worth 3.0 because you go to school in Spotsylvania County, but your friends who go to school in Stafford County will get a 3.5 for the same grade earned! How about an 85 You\'ll get a 2.0 and your friend in Arlington will get a 3.0! Consider the gap formed when four years of grades are averaged to calculate your GPA! When comparing competing Northern Virginia school district grading systems, Spotsylvania County students will always have a lower GPA for the same numeric grades earned. As parents, guardians, and students, we need to be extremely concerned. The current School Board grading policy limits opportunities presented to those students wishing to attend college. Specifically, a primary consideration for college admission, honors programs, and scholarship/grant monies is the GPA reported on high school transcripts. BE AWARE, COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES DO NOT RECALCULATE YOUR GPA -- DESPITE WHAT YOU ARE TOLD. ONLY THE SCHOOL BOARD CAN CHANGE THIS POLICY. As an elected body, the School Board is responsible to ensure any policy they implement DOES NOT adversely affect the students to whom they are responsible. As citizens of this School District, it is your responsibility to hold the School Board accountable for a policy which you do not agree with. By signing this Petition, you are acknowledging your concern over potential negative ramifications on students. By not signing this Petition, you are agreeing with the current policy and its consequqnces. This petition will be forwarded, together with your comments, to the School Board Members. The intent is to require the School Board to review the policy, compare it with competing school districts in Northern Virginia, and ultimately derive and implement a new policy which allows our students to compete fairly and on equal footing with their Northern Virginia peers. Please sign below!

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