1. Presentation to Parents and Students of the Class of 2017
Decatur High School
Presentation to Parents and Students of the Class of 2017
April 8, 2013

2. Decatur High School Contacts
Jason Cochran—Principal
Sheila McCollum—Asst. Principal Students A-G
Steven Valkenaar—Asst. Principal Students H-N
Cindy Bauter—Asst. Principal Students O-Z
Neal Hall—Counselor Students A-L
Paige Liggett—Counselor Students M-Z
Rene’ Fuller—STAAR/ACT/SAT, College & Career Readiness

3. High School Bell Schedule
Mon/Tues/Wed
Tutorials—7:30
1st 8:00-8:48
2nd 8:52-9:40
3rd 9:44-10:32
4th 10:36-11:27
5th 11:31-12:19
Lunch 12:19-12:58
6th 1:03-1:52
7th 1:56-2:44
8th 2:48-3:35
Thursday
Tutorials—7:30
2nd 8:00-9:30
4th 9:35-11:10
Lunch 11:10-11:55
6th 12:00-1:30
8th 1:35-3:05
Friday
1st 8:00-9:30
3rd 9:35-11:10
5th 12:00-1:30
7th 1:35-3:05
Students will be able to earn 8 credits each year.

4. Scheduling Procedures
8th graders will complete 4-year plan with guidance from counselors on April 11th and 12th.
Course requests for freshman year will be entered by counselors based on 4-year plan, so PLEASE TAKE THIS DOCUMENT SERIOUSLY.
The master schedule is generated from these requests, so changes to your schedule after requests have been processed are seldom approved.
IN OTHER WORDS, THE COURSES YOU WRITE ON YOUR 4-YEAR PLAN ARE THE COURSES YOU WILL BE TAKING YOUR FRESHMAN YEAR.

5. Although you will be asked to complete your requests for all 4 years of high school, the requests for your freshman year are the most important at this time.
Counselors will go into classrooms at the end of freshman year to adjust requests for sophomore year.
Students and parents will be invited to meet with counselors during sophomore year to adjust requests for junior and senior year.

6. When scheduling has been completed, you will be able to view your schedule on Skyward Family Access.
All requests to change your schedule must be made by Friday, August 9th.
Only LEGITIMATE requests will be considered. (Requests from students and/or parents for a specific teacher will NOT be considered.)
Administrative changes to schedules may occur up until the first day of school, so please check Skyward for the most current schedule.
All changes are subject to review/approval by principals and are dependent upon class size and other factors.

7. Advanced Courses
Honors and Pre-AP courses are extremely rigorous and require additional work both in and out of class.
Do not sign up for these courses unless you are highly committed and motivated to complete the additional work at an advanced level.
If your grade is less than 70 at 3 weeks or 6 weeks, you will be moved to a regular class.
If your grade is less than 75 at semester, you will be moved to a regular class.

8. Athletics
The following sports currently have an athletic period during the school day:
Football
Volleyball
Basketball
Cross Country
All other sports are offered outside the school day.

9. Graduation Requirements
Subject
Minimum
Plan
Recommended
Distinguished
English 4
Math 3
Science
Social Studies
Foreign Language 2
Health PE 1
Fine Arts
Communication Applications
Total
Core Courses 17 21 22
Electives 9 5
TOTAL CREDITS FOR GRADUATION 26

10. For More Information on Graduation Requirements
Please visit the TEA website at

11. Weighted GPA System SCALE AP with Bonus AP, Dual, Honors & PAP Regular
6.00
5.00
4.00 A
5.75
4.75
3.75 A-
5.50
4.50
3.50 B+
5.25
4.25
3.25 B
3.00 B-
2.75 C+
2.50 C
2.25 C-
2.00
* F
0.00

12. Designation of Courses for Class Ranking
Advanced Placement with Bonus: Students must score > 2 on the AP pretest (or > 2 on the actual AP Exam – for Juniors only) in order to receive 6 point GPA scale. Students who fail to meet this standard will remain on the 5 point GPA scale. Students will begin the AP class on the 5 point GPA scale, but will be moved to the 6 point GPA scale after the 5th grading term if they meet the pretest score requirement.
AP, Dual, Honors, and Pre-AP Courses (5 point classes)
Regular (4 point classes)
More detailed information can be accessed from the Course Description Handbook posted on the DHS website under “Campus Information” and “Counseling Center.”

13. Valedictorian & Salutatorian
The Valedictorian and Salutatorian will be selected from the students who have COMPLETED the Distinguished Achievement Plan PRIOR TO graduation. Students must provide the counselor’s office with documentation of all advanced measures in order to be considered for Valedictorian or Salutatorian.

14. Fish Camp
Will be held in August just prior to beginning of the school year.
Detailed information will be disseminated to parents in July.

15. Accessing Information
Skyward Family Access
Announcements are updated daily on the Decatur High School website (accessed via drop down menu from the DISD main website).

16. Contact Information
A-L:
M-Z:
STAAR/ACT/SAT, College/Career:
Main campus number:

17. All information can be accessed on our website: www.decaturisd.us.
Select a School: Decatur High School
Campus Information
Select a School: Decatur High School
Campus Information
Counseling Center