




What is an Individual Graduation Plan (IGP)?
What do students need to do to graduate from
high school?
What is a Pathway, and how do students choose
one?
Which tests students will take in high school.
Who do I ask for help?
Study Guide




Each grade 8 student will review the graduation
requirements with their advisor or counselor,
and create a plan to get them to graduation.
This plan is found on a website called
GACollege411 (www.gacollege411.org)
Parents can discuss this plan with the advisor
or counselor if they have questions.
The plan is a reflection of the graduation
requirements and pathway options we will
discuss.
GA 411 Homepage
High School Planning




Students need 24 units to graduate
Credits need to be earned in specific subject
areas
Students are required to complete 20 hours of
community service by the end of Junior year
(11th grade).
Required Areas of Study
Units Required
English/Language Arts
4
Mathematics
4
Science
4
Social Studies
3 (4 courses)
Health and Physical Education
1
World Language
3 College Prep Pathway
OR 1 CTAE Pathway (2 preferred)
CTAE (Career Technical Agricultural Education)
4 CTAE Pathway only
Electives
5 College Prep Pathway Students
OR 3 CTAE Pathway Students
Total Minimum Units
24
Core
Academic
Courses
English
Math
Science
CORE
World
Languages
Social
Studies
12
12
– 9th Literature & Composition
– 10th Literature & Composition
– 11th American Literature &
Composition
– 12th grade British Literature &
Composition
*Honors, AP, IB, or dual enrollment course
equivalents may be used
13
13
•
Mathematics CCGPS
9th - Coordinate Algebra
10th - Analytic Geometry
11th - Advanced Algebra
12th - Pre-Calculus or Approved 4th Option
OR
9th - Accelerated Coordinate Algebra/Analytic Geometry A
10th - Accelerated Analytic Geometry B/Advanced Algebra
11th - Accelerated Pre-Calculus
12th - AP Calculus, AP Statistics, Advanced level
Mathematics course or Approved 4th Option
14
14
 Biology
 Physical
Science
 Environmental Science, Chemistry, or
another GA DOE approved Science
 Physics or another GA DOE approved
Science

*Honors, AP, IB, or dual enrollment course
equivalents may be used
15
15
 World History
 American
Government
 United States History
 Economics
*Honors, AP, IB, or dual enrollment course
equivalents may be used
16
16

College sequence
 3 units required (of the same
language)
 4 recommended

CTAE sequence
 1 unit required
 2 units recommended
* While the GA Department of Education no longer requires
students to complete two units of foreign language for high
school graduation, the University System of GA does require
the completion of two years of the same foreign language.



Health (.5)
Personal Fitness (.5)
Electives to add to a minimum of 24 total units


A graduation pathway helps provide cohesion to the
additional electives and allows students to explore in
depth an area that interests them.
While the hope is that the pathway sparks a college
or career interest, at a minimum students gain
valuable knowledge by exploring at least one area in
depth as opposed to bouncing around intro level
electives in multiple areas with only surface
understanding.

Pathways available at School of Liberal Studies
at SHS are Law and Criminal Justice,
Nutrition and Food Science,
Adminstrative/Information Support, Small
Business Development, JROTC, Fine Arts:
Visual Arts, Band; World Language;
Advanced Academic




Advanced Academic – Pathway may be completed with an AP,
IB, or Dual Enrollment level course in any one of the following
content areas: English, mathematics, science, or social studies.
World Language – Pathway may be completed with 3 units of
credit in any of the language areas found in the state list of
approved courses.
Fine Arts – Pathway consists of sequential courses in any of the
following areas: journalism, music, theater, and visual arts.
(Dance, SAA only).
CTAE – Pathway is completed with a cluster of specific courses in
a CTAE-approved pathway.




Student may choose: English, mathematics,
science, or social studies.
Student must complete 4 required units in the
core area AND
Student must earn a minimum of two credits in
the same world language AND
Course history must also include at least one
AP, IB, or dual enrollment credit in the core
subject area.

Students must complete 3 sequential credits in
one Fine Arts Subject.
Theater
 Visual Arts
 Music (band or chorus)
 Journalism
 Dance (Savannah Arts Only)




Students must earn 3 sequential credits in the
same World Language.
Students may choose from any state approved
world language.
The third course may be high school credit, or
reflect AP, IB, or dual enrollment credit in the
selected world language.




Pathway is completed with a cluster of specific courses
in a CTAE-approved pathway.
Specific pathways are offered at each high school.
(listed on back of pathway selection form)
Additional CTAE pathway options are available at
Woodville Tompkins.
Students selecting a Woodville Tomkins pathway will
take Intro to Business & Technology at their home high
school then travel to WT in 10th grade for their
additional pathway classes. (Students who are NOT in
the specialty program located full time at WT).






A pathway to gauge interest in law and
criminal justice.
Careers: lawyer, police officer, probation
officer, court service, paralegal, CSI, Customs,
game warden, corrections, Border Patrol
A three-course sequence:
1 – Intro to Law and Criminal Justice
2 – Law, Community Response & Policing
3 – Criminal Investigation and Forensics
End of Course exams (EOC) counts as 20%
of a student’s final grade in a course.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
English 9 – Literature/Composition
English 11 –American Literature
CCGPS Coordinate Algebra
CCGPS Analytic Geometry
Biology
Physical Science
United States History
Economics
26
26



Students are required to do a minimum of 20
hours of Community Service at a non profit
organization of their choosing
Community Service logs are available in the
Counseling Office and online
Must be submitted to Advisors or Counselors
and include a 3 paragraph essay outlining their
experience


Students must pass at least 5 units (1 Eng., 1 Math,
1 Science, 1 Social Studies plus 1 more)
Attendance is EXTREMELY important!
No more than 15 absences are allowed per year (includes
excused and unexcused)
 Any child under 16 who during the school calendar year
has more than ten (10) days of unexcused absences is
considered truant and may be referred to the Court by the
School Social Worker
 If student MUST be absent, an official excuse or parent
note must be submitted immediately upon return (only 5
parent notes per year permitted)

As of the Class of 2017, the HOPE scholarship
program is requiring at least 4 courses
defined as “rigorous” to be eligible.
The courses include: advanced Math and Science
(Adv. Algebra, Trig) advanced Science
(Chemistry, Physics), advanced World
Language (Spanish III), dual-enrollment,
Advanced Placement courses.
Complete list on SHS website.






Dual Enrollment
Armstrong SU, Savannah SU, Sav Tech Coll
Part-time at Woodville Tompkins
AP (Advanced Placement) courses
Possibly earn college credit in high school
Early graduation
Work-based Learning
Internships






720 days (180 x 4)
Have fun!
Go to class
Study
Get involved
You start applying to college and a job
on August 6, 2016. The clock starts ticking on
your transcript and school record.