EC School Board, Administrators Clash Regarding Grading Policy

The Ellwood City Area School Board’s Board of Directors voted Monday night to recommend the school district move forward with a modified system of grading for the last nine-week period of the 2020 school year despite administrative push to continue with the grading system that was in place before the pandemic.

According to Kathy McCommons, a representative of the board’s education committee, administrators believe that using the regular grading system was the best way to proceed in the district’s continuity of education plan because that procedure keeps students motivated in continuing school work.

Superintendent Joseph Mancini said that in most of the Lawrence County Schools that is the process of grading being used.

However not all board members agreed and in a 6-2 vote, the board voted to push administration to pursue an alternate plan as suggested by the education committee.

The committee’s recommendation is a pass/fail option for each class. If a student passes the class in the fourth quarter, they will receive the higher percentage of either the first semester grade or the third quarter grade. If a student fails the class in the fourth quarter, they will receive the lower percentage of either the first semester grade or the third quarter grade.

Board member Jennifer Tomon voted a resounding “No” to the committee’s recommendation offering full support of the administration’s established regular grading plan.

“This does not give the students the opportunity to improve their marks,” she said.

Board director Gary Rozanski said he believed that the decision should be left up to the administration and that is was not a board decision, but voted to support the education committee’s recommendation.

McCommons, who was adamantly against the established grading policy being used during the pandemic, said the validity of the grades and the learning environment is not reliable. She said the current circumstance doesn’t support the current grading system.

“These students did not sign up for cyberschool,” she said.

McCommons said Ellwood City Area School District’s students are accustomed to a brick and mortar school with one-on-one teaching and that students with a lack of home support and guidance, or a lack of technology should not be slighted in their grades because of something that is beyond their control.

She said she believes that the committee’s grading recommendation will meet the motivation and improvement standards expected by the administration while still being fair for all students.

Tomon was not alone in disagreeing with the committee’s recommendation. School Director Erica Gray also voted “No.”

School Director Leroy Cortez was not in attendance of the meeting.