DEARBORN — Board Trustees were divided at the last Dearborn School Board meeting over whether freshman students should be able to advance to the next grade level, even after coming short on credits. 

According to Superintendent Brian Whiston, under a guideline change, ninth-graders would now be considered sophomores, even if they were short on credits, so they would not have to retake a required MEAP test. 

Whiston argued that students who come up short in credits, should still advance into classes in areas where they’ve passed, thus having them re-take the freshman MEAP test a year after they learned the material would most likely result in them failing the class. 

Trustee Hussein Berry argued against this method however, suggesting that the district still classifies such students as freshmen and ought to give them a refresher on the MEAP, before taking the exam again. 

“Here we go again. We keep moving them up,” said Trustee Hussein Berry, who argued students should still be called ninth graders, even if it meant they had to retake the MEAP.

“I’d rather give them a refresher class in something they need,” Whiston said, after questioning how such a program would fit in a student’s schedule. 

The superintendent stressed that the district is doing more at all grade levels to ensure students know the necessary material, before they are promoted to the next level. Board Trustees Mary Lane and James Schoolmaster agreed with the superintendent’s methods, arguing that calling a student a sophomore, even with short credits, is nothing more than just a title.

Board Trustee Schoolmaster pointed out that, regardless of grade level titles, all students would still need to meet a certain amount of credits by the end of their four years, in order to graduate. 

Other topics discussed at the board meeting included the upcoming SMART bond proposal, which will appear on the November ballot.  The district is already in the process of buying 30 brand new school buses, pending the approval of the $76 million bond. The district hopes to make additional improvements, including brand new computers and expansions on several school properties. 

The district is also in the process of opening a summer school program for elementary students. Five elementary schools, including Whitmore Bolles, Long, Nowlin and Snow, have already collaborated on a trial project this past summer involving 100 students, who attended the three-week school, for five days a week.