MCPS phases out night school

In an effort to phase out evening classes, Blair began offering High School Plus courses Sept. 11 to students in the classes of 2010 and 2011, according to Assistant Principal James Short, the lead High School Plus administrator for Blair.

Students graduating in 2008 and 2009 will still be eligible for night school, Short said.

High School Plus lets students recover credit outside of their regular school-day schedule while remaining at their home schools, according to High School Plus county supervisor Julie Hall. Night school is only held at Blair.

Blair's turnout this year for High School Plus was lower than expected, so fewer courses are offered than originally planned. Short said that 125 to 130 students are in the program's English 9, Algebra 1, Geometry, Biology or National State and Local Government classes.

This year, only 75 to 125 Blair students are enrolled in night school, compared to over 300 students that normally attended in previous years, Short said.

About 95 percent of students identified by the counseling department as missing credits signed up for High School Plus.

The program is divided into three sections: the "repeater" section, which lets students retake failed classes; "credit recovery," which lets students repeat single failed marking periods; and an "extended day" in which students can retake classes after school during an eighth period.

For this school year, the county allowed schools to choose which sections to offer. Blair implemented the repeater section and extended day classes, but not credit recovery, because the administration instead sought a gradual transition. "Once the administration and Mr. Williams have studied the program, we will implement [credit recovery]," Short said.

Hall said she believes the new program will succeed, because it lets students work with teachers from their home schools.

High School Plus was piloted last school year at four county schools: Albert Einstein, John F. Kennedy, Rockville and Wheaton. This year, the program was implemented in all 25 high schools.