Under this proposed law, to satisfy the competency requirement for high school graduation, students would either be required to achieve a minimum score on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) (or other statewide or district-wide assessments) or be required to satisfy school or district requirements for class credits, grades and attendance.

This proposed law would still require students to take the MCAS in the tenth grade, and those students who do not achieve a minimum score would be required to take the test a second time (in either the eleventh or twelfth grades). Students who enter Massachusetts schools in the eleventh or twelfth grades would only be required to take the MCAS one time.

This proposed law would allow former students who were denied their high school diplomas solely due to poor MCAS performance to request and receive their high school diplomas if they previously satisfied school or district requirements for class credits, grades and attendance.

This proposed law would prohibit any information about a student’s MCAS performance from being included on the student’s official high school transcript without the student’s written permission.