Some Florida counties will let seniors who have fulfilled all other graduation requirements join classmates at ceremonies.
By Associated Press
Published May 20, 2003
NAPLES - Schradaath Charles has met all the requirements necessary to receive her Naples High School diploma - except passing the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test.
That means the 18-year-old who spoke almost no English when she came to the United States four years ago from her native Haiti won't be graduating on Friday night.
But the Collier County School Board voted unanimously last week to allow seniors like Charles to participate in cap-and-gown commencement ceremonies, as long as they've met all graduation requirements except passing the FCAT.
"I'm really happy I get to walk with my friends," Charles said. "I'm not going to give up and I'm going to do everything I can to pass (the FCAT)."
At least six other Florida counties - Seminole, Orange, Lake, Osceola, Volusia and Polk - have similar graduation policies regarding seniors who have not passed the FCAT.
Across the state, nearly 13,000 12th-graders - roughly one Florida senior out of every 11 - haven't passed the FCAT, meaning they will not graduate as scheduled. This is the first year seniors have been required to pass the FCAT before graduating.
Seniors have had at least five opportunities to take the FCAT - once as sophomores and twice more as juniors and seniors. The state imposes no deadline for passing the test; those still seeking diplomas can continue taking it indefinitely.
Charles is one of 27 Naples High seniors who have yet to pass the FCAT. English is not the primary language for 20 of them. Naples High counselor Bernardo Torres said he'd like to see the state implement a different FCAT scoring system, especially in reading, for students who are still trying to learn English.
"If you've been in the country for one year and one day you have to take (the FCAT) test and pass it before you receive a high school diploma," Torres said.
In Polk County, Haines City has 82 seniors - more than 25 percent of the senior class - denied graduation because of the FCAT, principal Duane Collins said. Haines City has Polk's highest percentage of students with a primary language other than English.
"The schools are not failing the kids," Collins said. "I'm just not sure we're being treated fairly with the grading system."
Haines City, like many other schools, will present its seniors not graduating with certificates of completion inside the same diploma covers that other students receive.
Those who lack the required FCAT score will not receive caps and gowns in Pasco County. Students there who eventually pass the FCAT or satisfy other graduation requirements after the academic year ends will be invited to attend August or January ceremonies, district administrator Robert Dorn said.
"Sometimes people get confused about what the ceremony represents," Dorn said. "Graduation is not the last significant social event of senior year. It is a recognition of students who have earned their diplomas."
Limar Wilson, who will receive a regular diploma from Seminole County's Lyman High on May 27, said he has no problem with students participating in graduation ceremonies without first passing the FCAT.
"They went to school just like we did," said Wilson, 18. "They tried their hardest and they got their work done. They just couldn't pass the test."
Some of South Florida's black community leaders and legislators, who denounce the FCAT as unfair to minority students, are planning a protest, which they say will begin this week. The group wants Gov. Jeb Bush to put aside the consequences for students who failed this year's test and re-examine the FCAT policies.
