Revisting the loss of credit policy

By Amen Lemiesa and Ila Raso Staff & Senior Writer

In May 2010, MCPS abolished its longstanding loss of credit policy, which dictated that a student with five unexcused absences or 15 unexcused tardies for a semester class could be denied credit for that class. Following the initial shut down of MCPS in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a Board of Education (BOE) decision again reworked the policy to categorize unexcused absences as disciplinary infractions. Post pandemic, however, some teachers and faculty have floated the idea of bringing back the original loss of credit policy to stymie rising rates of absenteeism.

With the removal of the loss of credit policy in 2010, absenteeism in the forms of “truancy, cutting school, or leaving school grounds” is instead punishable with, at the minimum, administrative detention and, at the maximum, a pupil personnel referral. Referred students will be subject to pupil personnel workers who work on a case-by-case basis with students’ administrators, parents, counselors, and teachers to “assist in determining resources, strategies, interventions, and recommended placements for students who are not experiencing success in school.”

Michael Burnell expressed strong support for the reinstatement of the original policy but in a modified format that reasonably encourages students to come to class.

“[The loss of credit policy] should be reinstated,” he said. “[MCPS has] ineffectually turned the high school experience into essentially a college campus… where [students] can kind of come and go as they please.” ideal,” she said. “[Making] sure we have [the ability to show up] in place and making sure [that] students are accountable for the work in the classroom [is important].” the availability of parents to write excused-absence notes for the student. While some parents can write a note to give an excused absence to their student, others may not have this ability, oftentimes causing more Black and hispanic students to lose class credit rather than white students.

When asked if any modifications should be made to the policy, Burnell suggested extending the previous five unexcused absences to 10, which allows for more extenuating student circumstances. “I think you could extend [the prior five unexcused absences] to maybe ten… Five [is] way too tight of a circumstance, but I think that in today’s society, [10] kind of works itself out,” he said.

There have long been voices across MCPS advocating against the loss of credit policy. In early May 2010, the Loss of Credit Project Team, which is composed of MCPS teachers, administrators, and students, began evaluating the loss of credit policy and its effectiveness. The BOE initiated this evaluation following questions surrounding the policy’s inconsistencies and apparent racial disparities.

Compiled by Viveka Sinha Staff Writer

Xi visits Russia and Ukraine

Chinese President Xi Jinping commenced a three-day trip to Russia on March 20, his first visit to the nation since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War. The trip aimed to strengthen economic and political ties between the two countries.

Xi’s first visit was Moscow, where he held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed the war in Ukraine. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin stated that the Chinese proposition is to urge peace and promote talks between Ukraine and Russia. The Kremlin confirmed the two countries will discuss further development of comprehensive partnership relations and strategic cooperation between Russia and China.

When eliminating the original policy, the BOE also put the onus on individual schools to bolster student attendance, determine appropriate consequences, and mediate solutions, as summarized in the corresponding meeting transcript from 2010: “Each high school will establish a formal process to promote student attendance. This process will be designed to monitor data, provide targeted interventions, and develop incentives.”

After teaching through both the loss of credit policy and the current revised attendance policy, Blair world studies teacher

Junior Krish Wahi echoes Burnell’s concerns that the five unexcused absences may be too unforgiving and that the policy does not directly solve issues with absenteeism. “I think 10 or 15 is probably a better cut-off than five. Five is a small number and probably should be used as a warning instead,” Wahi stated. “Especially at Blair, we have odd-even days, and it’s like missing ten classes… could be like 20 [days of instruction].”

However, interim principal

Tracy Pettis-Jones supports the reinstatement of the policy with its previous limit of five unexcused absences, which she says will encourage timeliness, a skill Jones believes is necessary for student success both now and after graduating. “I just think a reinstatement of [the previous policy] would be

During the spring of 2008, for instance, 19.2 percent of Hispanic students and 16.4 percent of Black students lost credit, while only 4.1 percent of white students lost class credit. Through systemic racial inequity in trans-

Regardless, regular absences from school can make students feel less a part of their class while making it difficult for them to participate in class activities and interactions with teachers and peers, according to a February 2022 study from the University of Strathclyde in the U.K. Pettis-Jones echoed this idea, highlighting the long-term impact of absenteeism. “The discourse that you would have with your classmates when you’re not there, you miss all that,” she said. “Those are just skills and opportunities that will benefit students when they go to post-secondary plans, whether it’s a college, the world of work, you have to work with other people, have dialogue, and be able to work in groups.”

Following Xi’s visit to Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reportedly reached out to meet with the Chinese president via phone call; however, no details on the meeting have been confirmed. Zelenskyy hopes to include China in future peace discussions.

Australia reinstitutes Aboriginal alcohol ban

Australia is reestablishing a ban on the sale of alcohol to Aboriginal peoples in an attempt to tackle the sharp spike in Aboriginal crime caused by alcohol abuse. The ban previously expired in July 2022 due to a lack of support for its renewal, and alcohol has since flowed through the territory.

portation access, familial support, and socio-economic status, white students often have greater support ensuring no class credit is lost. A common disparity rests in language complications and

Teachers and administrators at Blair, including Pettis-Jones, have anecdotally reported an increase in absences following the COVID-19 pandemic, and as Wahi explains, the pandemic did play a role in making classroom attendance feel unnecessary to students. “Unexcused absences are probably a growing problem after COVID. [Absences] have probably increased because a lot of people have gotten into the mindset that ‘whatever I’m doing at school I can probably just do at home on our computer.’”

The restrictions prohibit anyone who lives in Aboriginal towns from buying takeaway alcohol. Critics argue that this ban would be discriminatory and would not solve underlying issues causing alcohol abuse in Aboriginal communities, such as poverty, lack of opportunities, and social inequality. However, Donna Ah Chee, the chief executive of the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress, argued that this ban will fulfill its purpose for the time being while still emphasizing the long-term, institutional discrimination and cyclic poverty faced by Aboriginals.

Death of two kidnapped Americans in Mexico

On March 7, two out of four Americans kidnapped by armed men in Matamoros, a city in Tamaulipas, Mexico, were found dead.

According to Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal, a Mexican cartel likely mistook them for Haitian drug smugglers. The two surviving Americans are now under FBI care and have returned safely to the U.S., although one of them had been shot in the leg.

Villarreal said the group was found in a wooden shack, where they were being guarded by a man who was later detained. He added that their captors had moved them around repeatedly, including to a medical clinic at one point, to try to create confusion and avoid rescue efforts.

The group of four friends had traveled from South Carolina to undergo a medical procedure across the border. Mexican authorities will examine the two killed before the bodies are turned over to the U.S. government.