NCSD Class Rank

High School (Kelly Walsh, Natrona County, & Midwest) Class Rank 
(Administrative Regulation 6410 Updated August 15, 2023)
Each semester, after the completion of the Spring Semester of a student’s junior year, class rank will be determined by NCSD’s weighted Grade Point Average (GPA). Students with a higher GPA will be ranked above those with a lower GPA. 

1. Seven (7) credits per academic year (28 total) shall be considered in determining final class rank. 
2. Approved courses qualified for high school graduation shall be weighted. Only weights for credits earned after the completion of a student's eighth grade year will be counted for ranking purposes. Any high school equivalent course being offered at middle school can receive high school transcript credit, however, high school equivalent courses taken in middle school will not count toward NCSD class rank at the high school level (See guidance from NCSD Standard Operating Procedure 6400) 
3. Any replacement/repeat course will be credited to the year for which the original class was taken and the GPA for that year recalculated. Courses repeated for a higher or passing grade will only count one time toward class rank and credit, but will remain on the transcript and noted as a 'repeated' course. 
4. Students who wish to pursue credits in excess of 7 per year and more than a 28 credit maximum may do so, but such courses shall not apply to class rank. The seven (7) credits which give the student the highest GPA for that year will be used for ranking computations. 
5. Exceptions to credits earned and course weighting prior to ninth (9th) grade will be determined collaboratively by the high school head principals.

Alternative High School (Roosevelt) Class Rank
Roosevelt High School does not rank students using the GPA system. Faculty will select the "Most Outstanding" and "Most Improved" male and female seniors. Those identified students will be recognized at the graduation ceremonies. 

Purpose and method to determine Unweighted, NCSD weighted and Wyoming Hathaway Scholarship impacting class rank weighted grade point average
NCSD recognizes three different (3) systems for reporting grade point average (GPA) and grade weighting: 

1. Unweighted GPA -A grade point average is a number representing the average value of the accumulated final grades earned in courses over time. 
2. Wyoming Hathaway Scholarship grade weighting 
3. NCSD weighted GPA - used for NCSD class rank 

*Definition of Wyoming Hathaway Scholarship Grade Weighting for NCSD
Additional Wyoming reporting is required for all Wyoming students beginning with the class of 2018-19. In 2017 the Wyoming Legislative Session established a grade-weighting policy that accounts for the increased academic rigor of high school courses beginning in the 2018-19 school year. Districts will be required to use a 5.0 weighted Hathaway scale for all AP, IB, and +1000 level and above dual/concurrent courses for all students. Districts will also be required to display the weighted Hathaway GPA on all student transcripts for Hathaway Scholarship awarding purposes. 

Process for Determining Class Rank for Traditional High Schools
Class Rank is determined on the basis of grades earned in courses qualified for high school graduation, excluding any .25 semester courses. 

Courses that are academically rigorous are assigned advanced or honors designations and carry the greatest weights in determining class rank. All levels (regular, advanced, honors/advanced placement) and all letter grades (A-F) are utilized to determine class rank.

Student rankings will be calculated at the end of each Fall and Spring Semester beginning after the end of Spring Semester of the student’s junior year by calculating the GPA for up to seven (7)courses per year qualified for high school graduation. 

Course Substitutions for all NCSD High Schools
The head principal will approve all substitutions under the following circumstances:

1. High School transfer credits may be substituted for class rank through the 7th Semester. Transfer classes taken to fulfill district graduation requirements must meet Wyoming Content and Performance Standards and NCSD Curriculum. The credit must be earned from an accredited institution.
2. Students may substitute a high school correspondence course (NON-NCSD Online or Distance Education Course) for applicable graduation courses. Correspondence classes taken to fulfill district graduation requirements must meet Wyoming Content and Performance Standards and NCSD Curriculum and be pre-approved by the high school principal. The credit must be earned from an accredited institution. Correspondence classes will count toward a student's class rank GPA if a letter grade of A-F was earned. 
3. Students transferring into our district or requesting correspondence course work with S/U grades will be given credit for those classes if the course qualified as a credit class from their previous school. However, the class will not count towards NCSD class rank GPA.
4. Credit awarded may be adjusted to reflect the instructional time based on the quantity of minutes for each course.
5. NCSD BOCES courses (Casper College dual or concurrent courses see NCSD SOP 6700-01) and other college/university courses will be weighted as identified through agreement of the NCSD high school principals (See NCSD Standard Operating Procedure 6200-02)
6. All other extenuating circumstances may only be approved by the head principal