Current Status Bill Number:4072 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:House Introduced Date:19950412 Primary Sponsor:Jaskwhich All Sponsors:Jaskwhich Drafted Document Number:gjk\21326sd.95 Residing Body:House Current Committee:Education and Public Works Committee 21 HEPW Subject:High school diplomas, academic scholars
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
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House 19950412 Introduced, read first time, 21 HEPW
referred to Committee
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TO AMEND SECTION 59-39-100, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF UNIFORM HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMAS AND THE UNITS REQUIRED FOR A DIPLOMA, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A STUDENT COMPLETING THE REQUIRED UNITS MUST BE ISSUED A STANDARD HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA AND TO DELETE A PROVISION WHICH SPECIFIES THAT ALL DIPLOMAS MUST BE UNIFORM IN RESPECT TO COLOR, SIZE, LETTERING, AND MARKING; TO AMEND THE 1976 CODE BY ADDING SECTION 59-39-101 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT PUBLIC AND NONPUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES WHO MEET CERTAIN SPECIFIED CRITERIA ARE DESIGNATED AS SOUTH CAROLINA ACADEMIC SCHOLARS AND SHALL RECEIVE A DIPLOMA DESIGNATING THEM AS SUCH, TO PROVIDE FOR THE AUTOMATIC ADMISSION TO ANY STATE-SUPPORTED COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY, OR TECHNICAL SCHOOL OF SOUTH CAROLINA ACADEMIC SCHOLARS WHO MEET CERTAIN CRITERIA, AND TO PROVIDE THAT ACADEMIC SCHOLARS ATTENDING A STATE-SUPPORTED COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY, OR TECHNICAL SCHOOL ARE ENTITLED TO CERTAIN TUITION REDUCTIONS; TO AMEND THE 1976 CODE BY ADDING SECTION 59-39-102 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION SHALL ESTABLISH CRITERIA FOR THE ISSUANCE OF AN APPLIED ACADEMIC HONORS DIPLOMA WHICH IS A DIPLOMA SIGNIFYING CERTAIN ACCOMPLISHMENT BEYOND THAT REQUIRED FOR A STANDARD DIPLOMA AS CONTAINED IN SECTION 59-39-100.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. (A) The mission of the high schools of this State is to challenge and prepare students to enter post high school education, employment, or both. Through intellectual, personal, physical, and social growth, graduates should be able and willing to take the appropriate first steps into their chosen field of work or study, to act responsibly as citizens, and to enjoy a productive life.
(B) To guide the high schools of this State in fulfilling this mission and their students in meeting these goals, the General Assembly has determined to enact the provisions of this act.
SECTION 2. Section 59-39-100 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-39-100. Diplomas must be issued to graduates of accredited high schools within this State must be uniform in every respect and particularly as to color, size, lettering, and marking. The number of units required for a standard state high school diploma is twenty units as prescribed by the State Board of Education. Beginning in the 1986-87 academic year, a minimum of 3 three units must be earned in mathematics and a minimum of 2 two units must be earned in science.
One unit in computer science, if approved by the State Department of Education for this purpose, may be counted toward the mathematics requirement.
Students who earn one unit in science and six or more units in a specific occupational service area will meet the science requirements for a standard state high school diploma. Vocational programs operating on a 3-2-1 structure may count prevocational education as one of the six required units."
SECTION 3. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 59-39-101. (A) For the purpose of recognizing and rewarding outstanding performance and academic achievement on the part of public and nonpublic school students, each high school graduate who meets the requirements of this section beginning with the 1995-96 school year must be awarded a diploma recognizing and designating the graduate as a South Carolina Academic Scholar.
(B) In order to qualify as a South Carolina Academic Scholar, a student must:
(1) complete a program of at least two more credits than the minimum number of credits required for high school graduation in advanced level studies as prescribed by the State Board of Education including as a minimum:
(a) four years of progressively advanced instruction in language arts, including courses in English composition and literature;
(b) four years of progressively advanced instruction in science, including laboratory courses in biology, chemistry, and physics where laboratory facilities are available;
(c) four years of progressively advanced instruction in mathematics, including courses in algebra and geometry and calculus or trigonometry;
(d) two years of sequential foreign language;
(e) one year of instruction in art and music or in either art or music;
(f) three years of instruction in social studies, including courses in American history and government, world history, and comparative political and economic systems; and
(g) one year of instruction in health and physical education to include assessment, improvement, and maintenance of personal fitness.
(2) demonstrate mastery of the performance standards and basic skills required by law or, if the student is a nonpublic school student, have achieved a score of eleven hundred on the combined verbal and quantitative parts of the Scholastic Aptitude Test of the College Entrance Examination or an equivalent score on the American College Testing Program;
(3) in lieu of the requirements specified in subitems (1) and (2) of this subsection, successfully complete the International Baccalaureate Program sponsored and administered by the International Baccalaureate Office.
(C) A student who does not meet the requirements of subsection (B)(1) as a result of reliance on inaccurate or incomplete information provided by a high school guidance counselor is eligible for a South Carolina Academic Scholars' diploma if these deficiencies are verified and the reasons for them confirmed in writing by the principal of the student's high school or the superintendent of the district on forms provided by the department, and the student satisfies these requirements by the end of his first semester of enrollment in a postsecondary institution. The requirements may also be satisfied by successful completion of the required coursework provided by a school district or technical college adult general education program. A student who does not satisfy all requirements of subsection (B)(1) by the end of his first semester of postsecondary enrollment is ineligible for designation as a South Carolina Academic Scholar.
(D) Each South Carolina Academic Scholar who demonstrates advanced proficiency, as defined by the State Board of Education, through performance on the combined verbal and quantitative portions of an approved standardized test is entitled to automatic admission to any state-supported college or university or technical college within the State, if his application for admission is filed within three years following graduation from high school and he meets the nonacademic standards established by the institution. Also, in addition to any other scholarships or financial aid the student may receive, he is entitled to a five percent reduction in each tuition payment, not including room and board if any, required to be made to the college, university, or school.
(E) Each district school board and the administrators of each nonpublic school are encouraged to make provisions, through appropriate and adequate course offerings at an advanced level in each high school or through cooperative arrangements with other schools, for students desiring to participate in the South Carolina Academic Scholars' Diploma Program.
(F) The State Board of Education is authorized to promulgate regulations necessary for the implementation and administration of this section. These regulations shall include specific course requirements and may also establish alternatives to any area of study or course of study specified herein, provided that adopted curriculum frameworks demonstrate that the alternative authorized is equivalent or more advanced."
SECTION 4. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 59-39-102. The State Board of Education by regulation shall establish criteria for the issuance of an applied academic honors diploma. The applied academic honors diploma must be issued beginning with the 1995-96 school year based on the criteria established by the State Board of Education in the manner provided by this section."
SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.