Louisiana Administrative Code
Title 28 - EDUCATION
Part IV - Student Financial Assistance-Higher Education Scholarship and Grant Programs
Chapter 17 - Responsibilities of High Schools, School Boards, Special School Governing Boards, the Louisiana Department of Education and the Louisiana Board of Regents on Behalf of Eligible NonLouisiana High Schools
Section IV-1703 - High School's Certification of Student Achievement
Universal Citation: LA Admin Code IV-1703
Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024
A. Responsibility for Reporting and Certifying Student Performance
1. Through the
2002 academic year (high school), responsibility for the identification and
certification of high school graduates who meet the academic qualifications for
a TOPS Award is as follows:
a. the principal
or the principal's designee for public high schools;
b. the principal or headmaster or designee of
each nonpublic high school approved by BESE;
c. the principal or headmaster or designee of
an eligible non-Louisiana high school;
d. the principal or headmaster or designee of
an out-of-state high school is responsible only for providing the high school
transcript or the date of graduation for those students who have applied for a
student aid program administered by the board.
2. Commencing with the 2003 academic year
(high school), responsibility for the submission and certification of courses
attempted and the grades earned for high school graduates is as follows:
a. the principal or the principal's designee
for public high schools;
b. the
principal or headmaster or designee of each nonpublic high school approved by
BESE;
c. the principal or
headmaster or designee of an eligible non-Louisiana high school;
d. the principal or headmaster or designee of
an out-of-state high school is responsible only for providing the high school
transcript or the date of graduation for those students who have applied for a
student aid program administered by the board.
3. The Louisiana Department of Education
shall certify to the board the names of students who are enrolled in and have
completed all mandatory requirements through the twelfth grade level of a
state-approved home study program.
B. Procedures for Reporting and Certifying Student Performance
1.
a. Through the 2002 academic year (high
school), the responsible high school authority shall record student performance
on the form provided by the board or in an electronic format pre-approved by
the board. The certification form shall be completed, certified and returned to
the board by the deadline specified on the form.
b. Commencing with the 2003 academic year
(high school), the responsible high school authority shall submit the required
student information in a standard electronic format approved by the
board.
2.
a. Through the 2002 academic year (high
school), the certification form shall contain, but is not limited to, the
following reportable data elements:
i.
student's name, address, phone number and Social Security number;
ii. month and year of high school graduation;
iii. final cumulative high school grade point average for all courses
attempted, converted to a maximum 4.00 scale, if applicable;
NOTE: Beginning with students graduating in 2002-2003, the cumulative high school grade point average will be calculated by using only grades obtained in completing the core curriculum; and
iv. through the graduating class of the
academic year (high school) 2002-2003, number of core units earned and the
number of core units unavailable to the student at the school attended. After
the graduating class of the academic year (high school) 2002-2003, core unit
requirements may not be waived.
b. Commencing with the 2003 academic year
(high school), certification shall contain, but is not limited to, the
following reportable data elements:
i.
student's name and Social Security number;
ii. month and year of high school
graduation;
iii. the course code
for each course completed;
iv. the
grade for each course completed;
v.
designation of each advanced placement, international baccalaureate, gifted and
dual enrollment course;
vi. the
grading scale for each course reported;
vii. list the high school attended for each
course reported; and
viii. through
the graduating class of the academic year (high school) 2002-2003, number of
core units earned and the number of core units unavailable to the student at
the school attended. After the graduating class of the academic year (high
school) 2002-2003, core unit requirements may not be waived.
c. Commencing with the 2014-2015
academic year (high school), for each student for whom the school has been
granted consent to collect and disclose PII to LOSFA, Louisiana public high
schools as defined in
§1703. A.1 above shall
collect the following reportable data elements for each year of attendance for
those students in the ninth through twelfth grades:
i. verification that the school has been
granted written consent to collect and disclose the students PII to LOSFA from
the students parent or legal guardian, if the student is not at least 18 or
judicially emancipated; or by the student, if the student is at least 18 or
judicially emancipated;
ii.
student's full name, date of birth, and Social Security number;
iii. transcript data, including, but not
limited to:
(a). students BESE identification
number;
(b). month and year of
high school graduation;
(c). the
course code for each course completed;
(d). the grade for each course completed;
(e). the term and year each course
is completed;
(f). designation of
each advanced placement, International Baccalaureate, honors, gifted and
talented, articulated course for college credit, and dual enrollment
course;
(g). the grading scale for
each course reported; and
(h). the
high school attended for each course reported.
d. Commencing with the 2014-15 academic year
(high school), certification from all approved non-public Louisiana high
schools as defined in
§1703. A.2 above shall
contain, but is not limited to, the following reportable data elements:
i. student's full name, date of birth, and
Social Security number;
ii.
transcript data, including, but not limited to:
(a). month and year of high school
graduation;
(b). the course code
for each course completed;
(c). the
grade for each course completed;
(d). the term and year each course is
completed;
(e). designation of each
advanced placement, International Baccalaureate, honors, gifted and talented,
articulated course for college credit, and dual enrollment course;
(f). the grading scale for each course
reported; and
(g). the high school
attended for each course reported.
3. Through the 2002 academic year (high
school), the responsible high school authority shall certify to the board the
final cumulative high school grade point average of each applicant and that
average shall be inclusive of grades for all courses attempted and shall be
computed and reported on a maximum 4.00 grading scale.
a. The following grading conversion shall be
used to report the applicant's cumulative high school grade point average:
i. letter grade A = 4 quality points;
ii. letter grade B = 3 quality
points;
iii. letter grade C = 2
quality points;
iv. letter grade D
= 1 quality point.
b.
Schools which award more than 4 quality points for a course must convert the
course grade to a maximum 4.00 scale using the formula described in the example
that follows. (In this example, the school awards one extra quality point for
an honors course.)
i. Example: an applicant
earned a "C" in an honors English IV course and received 3 out of the 5
possible quality points that could have been awarded for the course.
ii. In converting this course grade to a
standard 4.00 maximum scale, the following formula must be used:
iii. In this example, the quality points for
this honors English IV course should be recorded as 2.40 when the school
calculates and reports the student's cumulative high school grade point
average.
4.
Commencing with the 2003 academic year (high school), the board shall determine
whether high school graduates have completed the core curriculum and compute
the TOPS cumulative high school grade point average for each such graduate
using a maximum 4.00 grading scale. Grades awarded on other than a maximum 4.00
scale shall be converted to a maximum 4.00 scale.
C. Certifying 1998 Graduates for the TOPS Performance Award. 1998 graduates who are ranked in the top five percent of their graduating class in accordance with §1703 shall be credited with having completed the core curriculum for purposes of the TOPS; however, only those meeting the following criteria shall be eligible for the Performance Award by the board:
1. those students who have attained
a final cumulative high school grade point average of at least a 3.50 on a 4.00
maximum scale; and
2. an ACT score
of at least 23.
D. Certification
1. Through the 2002 academic
year (high school), the high school headmaster or principal or designee shall
certify that:
a. all data supplied on the
certification form are true and correct, to the best of his knowledge or
belief, and that they reflect the official records of the school for the
students listed; and
b. records
pertaining to the listed students will be maintained and available upon request
to the board and the Legislative Auditor for a minimum of three years or until
audited, whichever occurs first; and
c. the school under the principal's
jurisdiction shall reimburse the board for the amount of a program award which
was disbursed on behalf of a graduate of the school, when it is subsequently
determined by audit that the school incorrectly certified the
graduate;
2. commencing
with the 2003 academic year (high school), the submission of the required data
by the high school headmaster or principal or designee shall constitute a
certification that:
a. all data reported are
true and correct, to the best of his knowledge or belief, and that they reflect
the official records of the school for the students listed; and
b. records pertaining to the listed students
will be maintained and available upon request to the board and the legislative
auditor for a minimum of three years or until audited, whichever occurs first;
and
3. commencing with
the 2014-2015 academic year (high school), the submission of the required data
by the high school headmaster or principal or designee of Louisiana public high
schools as defined in
§1703. A.1 above shall
constitute a certification that:
a. the
school has complied with the requirements of
R.S.
17:3913(K) to :
i. beginning in the eighth grade, annually at
the beginning of each school year, provide a form to be signed by the parent or
legal guardian of each student enrolled in the school, whereby the student's
parent or legal guardian may provide consent or deny consent for the collection
and disclosure of the student's personally identifiable information as follows:
(a). full name;
(b). date of birth;
(c). Social Security number; and
(d). transcript data, including, but not
limited to:
(i). students BESE identification
number;
(ii). month and year of
high school graduation;
(iii). the
course code for each course completed;
(iv). the grade for each course completed;
(v). the term and year each course
is completed;
(vi). designation of
each advanced placement, International Baccalaureate, honors, gifted and
talented, articulated course for college credit, and dual enrollment
course;
(vii). the grading scale
for each course reported; and
(viii). the high school attended for each
course reported;
ii. use a form provided by LOSFA or a form
substantially similar to LOSFAs form that:
(a). provides notification of exactly what
items of student information will be collected and that disclosure of the
student information collected will be restricted to Louisiana postsecondary
educational institutions and the Office of Student Financial Assistance to be
used solely for the purpose of processing applications for admission and for
state and federal financial aid;
(b). requires acknowledgment that the failure
to provide written consent for the collection and disclosure of the student's
information may result in delays or may prevent successful application for
admission to a postsecondary educational institution and for state and federal
student financial aid;
iii. collect the personally identifiable
information for each student for whom consent was provided;
4. commencing with the
2003 academic year (high school), if a student is determined to be eligible for
a TOPS Award based on data that is incorrect and the student was in fact
ineligible for a TOPS Award or the level awarded, the high school must
reimburse the board for the amount paid in excess of what the student was
eligible for.
AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 17:3021-3031, R.S. 17:3129.7 and R.S. 17:5001 et seq.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Louisiana may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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