Class of 2020

Performance

Acknowledgements

Distinguished Level of Achievement

Endorsements

Foundation High School Program

for students entering

high school in 2014 and

thereafter

• English Language Arts – 4 credits

• Math – 4 credits

• Science – 4 credits

• Social Studies – 3 credits (4 credits recommended)

• Physical Education – 1 credit

• Languages Other Than English (LOTE) – 2 credits (same language)

• Fine Art – 1 credit

• Speech – ½ credit

• Electives – 6½ credits (dependent upon endorsement)

Grade 9

• English 1

• Algebra 1

• Biology

Grade 10• English 2

Grade 11• US History

STAAR/EOC Exams

A student earns a credit (1.0) when he/she successfully completes a year-long course. Passing requires a minimum of a 70 and being in attendance 90% of the time.

A student earns a .5 credit by successfully completing a semester-long course.

Students must earn a particular number of credits to be promoted from one grade to the next.

6 credits = Sophomore (Grade 10)

13 credits = Junior (Grade 11)

19 credits = Senior (Grade 12)

• Pre-AP Algebra I*

• Art I*

• Communication Applications (.5)*

• Spanish I*

• Health (.5)

• Lifetime Nutrition & Wellness

*Required for high school graduation – Algebra I, one high

school fine art (i.e. Art I), two years of the same world

language (i.e. Spanish), Communication Applications

8th Grade Math

Regular or PreAP

Algebra I

Regular or PreAP

Geometry

Regular or PreAP

Algebra II

Regular or PreAP

PreCalculus

PreAP Algebra I (high school credit)

PreAP Geometry

PreAP Algebra II

PreAP PreCalculus

AP Calculus or AP

Statistics

9th Grade

10th Grade

11th Grade

12th Grade

A student may

not receive

credit for the

same course

twice. If a student

is in PreAP

Algebra I, he/she

will sign up for

PreAP Geometry.

• Athletics class (by sport)

• Athletic Trainer (all start by assisting Football)

• Band, Color Guard, or Drill Team - provides 1.0 fine art credit AND .5 PE

credit (fall only)

(Note - completing two years of one of these activities will provide your full PE credit; can earn a maximum of 1.0 PE credit through these activities.)

• Cheerleading I – provides 1.0 PE credit the first year

• Dance I - provides 1.0 Fine Art credit and 1.0 PE credit (Aerobic Fitness)

(Note: Athletes who take Dance cannot be awarded additional PE credit.)

• PE class

Baseball (B)

Basketball (B,G)

Cross Country (B,G)

Diving (B,G)

Football

Golf (B,G)

Soccer (B,G)

Softball (G)

Swimming (B,G)

Tennis (B,G)

Track (B,G)

Volleyball (G)

Wrestling

Aerobic Fitness (.5-1)

Individual/Team Sports (.5-1)

Outdoor Education (.5)

Foundations of Personal Fitness/Strength & Tone

(.5-1)

• Spanish I

• Spanish II or PreAP Spanish II (must have successfully completed

Spanish I)

• Spanish I/Spanish II for Spanish Speakers (requires an oral and

written fluency test)

• French I

• German I

• ASL I (not accepted at every college as meeting admission

requirements)

• Art I

• Band I (includes Color Guard/Winter Guard)

• Choir I

• Dance I or Drill Team I (Drill Team is by audition.)

• Digital Art and Animation (Grades 10-12 only)

• Floral Design (Grades 10-12 only)

• AP Music Theory (Must read and write basic music notation and have basic skills in voice or instrument; to be taken concurrently with Band, Choir, or Orchestra)

• Orchestra I

• Theatre I

• Technical Theatre I (requires Theatre I as a pre-requisite or director approval)

19.5 CORE credits (including required electives)

6.5 elective credits geared towards your ENDORSEMENT

Total: 26 credits for graduation!

7 classes per year X 4 years = opportunity for 28 credits

A coherent sequence of electives in a specific area of interest.

These electives may be taken through an academy or through a

specified Career Pathway.

There are FIVE endorsements:

• Arts and Humanities

• Business and Industry

• Multidisciplinary Studies

• Public Services

• STEM

An endorsement can be changed as long as there is still time to complete a new endorsement.

Students who choose an Arts and Humanities endorsement will

need to take a coherent sequence of credits in a specific area of

interest:

• Additional Social Studies

• Fine Arts

• Additional World Languages

Courses available to 9th

graders are highlighted

in yellow.

• Agricultural, Food, & Natural

Resources

• Architecture & Construction

• Arts, Audio/Video

Technology &

Communications

• Business Management and

Administration, Finance, &

Marketing

• Hospitality & Tourism

• Information Technology,

Technology Application, &

Business Information

Management

• Transportation, Distribution, &

Logistics

Students who choose a Business & Industry endorsement will need to

take a coherent sequence of credits in a specific area of interest:

Courses available to 9th

graders are highlighted

in yellow.

• Complete four credits from each core area (English, math,

science, and social studies). Must include English 4 and Physics

and/or Chemistry.

• Complete four AP or dual credit (college) credits from the

following departments: English, math, science, social studies,

LOTE, and/or fine arts.

• Complete four advanced courses from within one endorsement

or among multiple endorsements (*Denotes advanced

applicable CTE courses.)

Courses available to 9th

graders are highlighted

in yellow.

Students who choose a Public Service endorsement will need to

take a coherent sequence of credits in a specific area of interest:

• Education and Training

• Health Science

• Human Services

• Law, Public Safety, Corrections, and Security

Courses available to 9th

graders are highlighted

in yellow.

Students who choose a STEM endorsement will need to take a

coherent sequence of credits in a specific area of interest and

Algebra 2, Chemistry, and Physics. Options may include:

• STEM/Engineering

• Additional Science

• Additional Math

• Computer Science

Courses available to 9th

graders are highlighted

in yellow.

Academy of Aeronautics & Aviation Sciences (AAAS) = Business & Industry Endorsement

Academy of Biomedical Sciences (ABS) = Public Service Endorsement

Academy of Business Management & Entrepreneurship (BME) = Business & Industry Endorsement

Collegiate Academy = Multidisciplinary Endorsement

Cosmetology Academy = Public Service Endorsement

Culinary Arts & Hospitality Academy = Business & Industry Endorsement

Academy of Media Arts & Technology (AMAT) = Business & Industry Endorsement

Academy of Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math (STEM) = STEM Endorsement

Performance

Acknowledgements

Distinguished Level of Achievement

Endorsements

Foundation High School Program

• Must meet all Foundation High School Program requirements

• Must meet all the requirements for an Endorsement

• Math - one of the advanced mathematics courses must include

Algebra 2

Examples of math sequences:

Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra 2, PreCalculus

Algebra I, Geometry, Algebraic Reasoning, Algebra 2

• Students in the top 10%* of their graduating class are eligible

for automatic admission to any public university in Texas.

• To be eligible for this automatic admission, students entering

high school in 2014-15 and thereafter must complete the

Distinguished Level of Achievement.

• UT Austin – top 7% currently

Students may earn performance acknowledgments for

outstanding performance in the following areas:

Dual credit courses

Bilingualism and bi-literacy

AP testing

ACT – Plan, PSAT, SAT, or ACT

Earning a nationally or internationally recognized business or

industry certification or license

* See NISD Course Selection Guide for more detailed information.

College admissions – Colleges look for students who have

completed rigorous coursework (PreAP, AP, Dual Credit).

While in high school, students will have the opportunity to

earn college credit through AP courses and Dual Credit

college courses.

Students with higher level courses are generally more

prepared for college level work and more likely than their

peers to complete a college degree on time.

Students can earn college

credits early through AP

courses if they make qualifying

scores on the AP exams in May

(in high school). Highest score

possible is a 5. Typically,

students need to make a 3, 4,

or 5 to receive any college

credit. Credit awarded varies

depending on the

college/university and may

also depend on the student’s

major.

Are you taking

at least ONE

PreAP or AP course next

year?

Arts

AP Art History

AP Music Theory

AP Studio Art: 2-D Design

AP Studio Art: 3-D Design

AP Studio Art: Drawing

English

AP English Language & Composition

(English 3)

AP English Literature & Composition

(English 4)

History and Social Science

AP European History

AP Human Geography

AP Macroeconomics

AP Psychology

AP US Govt. & Politics

AP World History

Math & Computer Science

AP Calculus AB

AP Calculus BC

AP Computer Science Principles

AP Computer Science A

AP Statistics

Science

AP Biology

AP Chemistry

AP Environmental Science

AP Physics C: Mechanics

AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism

AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based

World Language & Cultures

AP French Language and Culture

AP German Language and Culture

AP Spanish Language and Culture

Consider…

• Your academic strengths

• Teacher, parent, and/or counselor input

• Reviewing past grades and test performances

• Personal goals

• Extra-curricular activities

Most importantly…your motivation, effort, &

attitude!

• Class Ranking will include grades earned in courses under the

following headings: English, Math, Science, Social Studies, and

Languages other than English.

• The Grade Point Average (GPA) used to determine class rank

only is calculated on a weighted scale.

Advanced Placement (AP) = up to 7 points

PreAP/Dual Credit = up to 6 points

Regular = up to 5 points

9th Grade

Courses on

the PGP

will serve

as your 9th

grade

course

requests!

Each secondary student has his/her own Naviance (a.k.a. Family

Connections) account.

Through Naviance, our students have the opportunity to research

colleges and careers, track their community service, build a

resume’, and take personality and career assessments.

As a student enters high school, he/she will continue to use

Naviance/Family Connections to:

• Indicate colleges he/she is thinking about or applying to

• Request transcripts

• Request teacher and staff letter of recommendations

• Track college applications/view deadlines

• Utilize the personalized TestPrep course for SAT and/or ACT

We invite you to partner with us as your child begins to plan for

his/her future and the path he/she will take to get there.

-NISD Counselors