HIGH SCHOOL GUIDELINES
Gateway expects the parent/guardian to oversee the student's fulfillment of requirements for graduation. Our goal is to prepare a credible transcript of the student's academic work for presentation to another high school, college, employer, or the military. Therefore, we must evaluate the acceptability of the coursework.
I. REQUIREMENTS FOR HIGH SCHOOL
A. School Year
Please enroll by August 1. A regular school year is 180 days. This requirement, however, does not apply to students who have completed everything necessary for graduation. They may graduate throughout the year, whether or not 180 days have been completed.
B. Credits
We consider one credit to be the equivalent of 150 classroom hours. The maximum for a two-semester school year is eight credits (four credits max per semester). The minimum is four per school year (two per semester). Twenty-two (22) credits are required for graduation. Bear in mind that not all credits from other schools transfer, and some courses have prerequisites in order to receive credit.
C. Summer School
A full summer session is typically 55-60 days. The maximum for a three-month summer session is three credits. The summer education plan should be submitted for the counselor's approval prior to beginning summer studies in order to avoid doing work that later may not be approved for credit. Non-academic courses (such as Distributive Education, P.E., etc.) will not be given summer credit unless accompanied by an academic subject.
D. Language Arts/English
High School English typically includes Grammar, Composition, and Literature. Generally, only one credit of English is earned in a regular (two-semester) school year.
E. Electives
Elective credits are required to meet the 22 credit minimum (two credits for College-Prep course of study and six for General Course). For a list of possible electives click here.
II. RECORD KEEPING
A. Application & Education Plan
Please retain all high-school Applications and Education Plans for your records. If you make changes in teaching materials during the semester, please update your Education Plan immediately. Bear in mind that receiving high-school credit requires Gateway's approval.
B. Grade/Attendance Reports
Submit one grade report per semester/summer term upon completion. List courses by specific titles (e.g., "Algebra I" or "Geometry" instead of "Math"). Please retain Grade/Attendance Reports for your records.
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III. PREPARING FOR GRADUATION
Please enroll seniors at the beginning of the school year and submit final grades at the end of the spring semester, or summer session at the latest. *August 31 is the final date for grades.* Late submission of grades may necessitate re-enrollment and completion of further studies in the subsequent school year in order to receive a diploma. Timely submission helps avoid unanticipated issues that could delay (or even prevent) graduation. Please allow two weeks to receive the diploma and transcript. If final transcripts are needed for college, the military, or a potential employer, please make your request when you submit final grades. Diplomas will be mailed to your home.
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IV. TRANSCRIPTS
A. Requests
All Grade/Attendance Reports must be submitted for transcripts to be completed. If transcripts are needed immediately upon graduation, please submit your request at the same time you submit final grades. We will attempt to fulfill your requests expeditiously. However, when demand is high, you should allow two weeks for us to prepare final transcripts.
B. ACT/SAT
In order for ACT/SAT scores to be sent to Gateway and included on the transcript, a student should enroll for these tests as a Gateway student, rather than "home schooled." Thus, when registering for the ACT, under "High School Information," you should search "Tennessee/Memphis" (not Zip) for "Gateway Christian Schools" (not "home schooled"). For SAT, use code 431421. If a previous test was taken under the designation "home schooled," ACT/SAT will not send the scores to us automatically. The parent must arrange with ACT/SAT to have such scores sent to Gateway.
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V. MISCELLANEOUS
A. Finishing High School Early
High School may be completed in less than the typical four years, by doing greater credit loads and adding English in summer session(s). A student must take an ACT/SAT and score a minimum of 21 (or equivalent) to graduate before his/her seventeenth birthday. A student who attempts to graduate early but does not make a sufficient ACT/SAT score will not receive a high-school diploma from Gateway.
B. Earning Credits Before Ninth Grade
A student may acquire up to three high-school, core-curriculum (non-elective) credits before he/she enters ninth grade. However, not all core subjects are acceptable (e.g., English and U.S. History are not awarded high-school credit before 9th grade). The following courses may be taken before 9th grade for high-school credit: Algebra I & II, Geometry, World History, World Geography, Foreign Languages, as well as college-prep sciences, such as Physical Science, Biology, and Chemistry. Please indicate planned credit for all high-school coursework on the Education Plan form.
C. "Honors/AP" Courses
Gateway does not offer "Honors" or "AP" courses. We will transfer courses from other schools that use these designations, but these courses will not have extra weight in Gateway's GPA. Our GPA calculation is "unweighted" for all courses (i.e., A=4.0, B=3.0, etc.).
D. Dual/Joint/Concurrent Enrollment Courses at Colleges
Parents may use dual/joint enrollment as a portion of their home education program but not as a substitute for home education. Gateway requires students to do a substantial amount of their studies at home. When applying for dual enrollment, remember that you are dealing with two schools -- the high school (Gateway) and the college. You must meet the requirements of both to be eligible. To be sure that you are meeting Gateway's requirements, please read our Dual-Enrollment Guidelines. To be approved, a student must be enrolled with Gateway for the school year in which dual-enrollment classes will be done and all grades must be current. He/she should be approved by Gateway for dual enrollment before the first day of class.
E. Physical Education
One P.E. credit will be awarded for 150 hours of physical activity of an athletic or sporting nature. This may be completed in one year or in half-credit increments over two years. Additional P.E. credit may be earned as an elective.
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Click here for a PDF of the High School Guidelines.
If you have questions please contact us by phone, fax, mail, or e-mail (info@gatewaychristianschools.com).