PA’s Statewide High School Graduation Requirements Are Planned To Go Into Effect This School Year.

Posted on October 19, 2022
Categories: News from SDP

September 19, 2022

Dear School District of Philadelphia Parents & Families,

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has introduced statewide Pathways to Graduation — expanded high school graduation requirements that were originally made into law in 2018 and are currently planned to go into effect beginning this 2022-2023 school year. 

This means that in addition to the 23.5 credits and service learning project previously required to graduate, high school students graduating from a Pennsylvania high school starting this school year must meet additional requirements through one of five pathways designed to illustrate their college, career and community readiness. The five pathways are:

  • Pathway 1: Keystone Proficiency
  • Pathway 2: Keystone Composite
  • Pathway 3: Career & Technical Education Concentrator
  • Pathway 4: Alternative Assessment
  • Pathway 5: Evidence-Based Pathways

Each of the five pathways offers a different combination of options that can serve to fulfill the additional graduation requirements. Details for each Pathway and other helpful resources can be found here. It is important to note that all students must take the Keystone Exams, even though achieving proficiency is one, but not the only, way to meet the statewide graduation requirements.

We are working with urgency to provide all students with the information and supports they need to meet the graduation requirements. Starting with seniors, and then expanding to juniors and sophomores, our staff members will determine for each student:

  • credits attained to date;
  • the status of their service learning project;
  • which pathway represents the best opportunity to graduate on time;
  • and what else may be needed to successfully meet the expanded graduation requirements. This could include tutoring, credit recovery programs, internships and work-based experiences within the school-year and during the summer.

Our high schools will share letters with this information for each senior student and their families by mid-October, and with sophomore and junior students and their families by the end of October. Graduation readiness updates will be provided throughout the year via quarterly report cards and parent-teacher conferences.

We look forward to supporting you and your child on the best pathway to a successful future, and will keep you informed of any updates as they are available.

Sincerely,

Tony B. Watlington Sr., Ed.D.

Superintendent

The School District of Philadelphia