Senior Year Plus (SYP) was enacted by the Iowa legislature in November of 2009 to provide more equal access for high school students to college credit courses. Courses delivered through SYP provide students the opportunity to take a rigorous curriculum and receive both high school and college credit. At Grundy Center High School these courses include:

Concurrent Enrollment Courses Western Outreach Center Career Academy courses On-site college-level courses Iowa Communication Network courses (ICN/other) Iowa Learning Online courses Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Act courses (PSEO)

Students that take these classes will be charged a $35. textbook fee for each concurrent class students are enrolled in.

The second requirement for the 2013-2014 school year will again require students taking concurrent classes (college classes) at Grundy Center or the Western Outreach to take the COMPASS tests or ACT test. Students taking concurrent classes (high school students enrolled in community college coursework) must have the following scores in order to take the classes and receive college credit. The scores that are required are a reading score of 82 and a writing score of 65 on the Compass test or an ACT Reading score of 19 and an ACT English Score of 19.

Students wanting to take concurrent math classes must have the following scores:

Math for Liberal Art – Compass (Algebra) 42 or ACT 19

Statistics – Compass (Algebra) 42 or ACT 19

Calculus I – Compass (Trigonometry) 51 or ACT 27

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call Mr. VanderPol, Mrs. Lebo, or Mrs. Hinderhofer. Feel free to send us an email and we will respond to your questions. It is important that students and parents understand the requirements for students taking concurrent classes.

A student is proficient when they have achieved the 41st National Percentile Rank or higher on the most current math, science and reading Iowa Assessments.

If a student at Grundy Center High School does not meet the proficiency requirement as stated above, he/she may choose an alternative assessment or evaluation stipulated by the school. The following list includes approved measures for proficiency. The student must be proficient in one of these for measures in order to take concurrent classes.

The student will be judged proficient on the reading, math and science portion of the NWEA (MAP) test from the most recent testing period. Proficiency is determined by the RIT score that correlates to the 41st percentile or higher on the Iowa Assessments.

The student is proficient on the reading, math and science portions of the ACT if the scores for reading, math and science put the student above the 41st percentile nationwide (Reading: 19; Math: 18; Science: 19).

The student will be judged proficient if they have received a letter grade of “C” or better in the last related course taken in reading, math or science. The student may be judged proficient by a team of Grundy Center faculty. The student’s work will be assessed through a related coursework portfolio. (SYP Rubric)

State guidelines now require all students enrolling in Senior Year Plus courses for the 2010-2011 school year be proficient in reading, math and science as defined by No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements assessed through the Iowa Assessment. Students not proficient but have and Individualized Education Plan (IEP) will have an IEP team review to determine eligibility under the rules for SYP.