Iola High School students — and their parents — will need to do a little more to prepare for their future if they want to graduate, thanks to new state requirements.
Most students already meet the new criteria simply by pursuing their interests and goals for the future, IHS Principal Scott Carson assured board members at a meeting Monday. The changes apply to this year’s freshman class, which will graduate in 2028.
The changes mostly relate to “post-secondary assets” — achievements or experiences that prepare them for higher education or the workforce.
That can include earning an industry-recognized certificate such as from the Rural Regional Technology Center at LaHarpe, 40 hours or more of community service, earning college credit hours, an apprenticeship, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout or Girl Scout Gold Scout, participating in at least two sports or activities, or achieving a score of 21 or higher on the ACT.
The state offers a list of 22 items that qualify. Graduates need two.
“A lot of our kids are already doing these things,” Carson said. “We just have to keep track and document.”
The changes likely will require better communication between parents, students and school staff, Carson said.
“We need to get parents more involved and talk about these things. What’s their plan to get their children ready for whatever they’re going to do after high school.”
Otherwise, the new requirements won’t require much change when it comes to the types of academic credits needed to graduate. Students still need to take English, math, science and other basics.
Students also need to take a financial literacy class and at least one advanced STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) class.
The Iola district has offered a financial literacy class called “consumer education,” for about 15 years, Superintendent Stacey Fager said. It’s already a graduation requirement within the district, but will be new statewide.
The advanced STEM class can include a fourth-level math or science class such as precalculus, calculus, statistics or physics, but can also include agriculture-related classes such as botany and plant/animal science.
Other options are classes such as robotics, computer programming, tech classes at the RRTC, and a second-year esports class (the district added esports this year).
“You also hear about STEAM, which brings in the arts. The state didn’t do that, which is too bad. That’s an area we could potentially advance in, such as stage craft or stage building,” Fager said.
He also noted Doug Kerr has created new Career and Technical Education programs for special populations, “so we’re covering all of our students to get them career ready.”
