Students entering 11th or 12th grade in the 2021-2022 school year have the opportunity to exclude one Fine Arts or Athletics credit from their class rank and GPA calculations. Eligible courses include Theatre, Tech Theatre, Dance, Drill Team, Athletic Trainer, Band, Color Guard, Athletics/Manager, Choir, and Orchestra with requests due April 16.

“This option allows students who have a GPA of 5.0 or greater to continue in their extracurricular activities without having to worry about their GPA dropping from an extracurricular class,” counselor Stefanie Mueller said. “I would suggest this course of action to current sophomore and junior students in Theater, Band, Choir, Drill Team, Orchestra or Athletics that have a GPA of 5.0 or higher.”

Being able to explore interests beyond cored classes shouldn’t hurt a student’s GPA according to junior Lalana Karri.

“Taking a Fine Arts is really useful because it helps you to develop your creative skills unlike solely taking academic courses,” Karri said. “I feel like that opportunity shouldn’t come at the cost of your GPA as that causes many people to refrain from taking Fine Arts classes. I want to participate in my areas of interest without having to worry about it affecting my GPA negatively.”

Athletics coach Allen Harris believes that this opportunity allows students to enjoy their classes without worrying about the aftermath.

“All the students that I have are very hardworking and strive to maintain good grades in athletics,” Harris said. “I would hate to see a student be affected so negatively by something that they’re so passionate about. It really is great that students are able to foster their interests and still be able to maintain a good standing when it comes to their ranks and grades.”

However, even with all the proposed advantages, the Opt-Out opportunity might not be the best pathway for some. 

“This is primarily for students with a 5.0 GPA or higher who feel an on-level class with a maximum of 5.0 GPA points could bring their GPA down,” LHS counselors said in an email sent out to all students.

Choosing the GPA Opt-Out for choir was a fruitful decision for senior Megan Guidry, even though there are a few things that she wishes were different.

“Opting out definitely helped my GPA because it allowed me to continue being in choir,” Guidry said. “I think that opting out encourages people to continue participation in Fine Arts and Athletics, which otherwise would have brought their weighted GPAs down if they had above a 5.0. However, I do wish that varsity ensembles and sports could be weighted more than on-level classes, mainly because they require intensive out of school practice and are technically classified as ‘advanced’ classes. If that were the case, I doubt that many students would even need to utilize the opting out GPA option. But, I’m still glad that it’s in place for students’ convenience.”