St Benedict Preparatory Schools: High School Grades 6 -12

As communicated in our Vision of Excellence plan to transition the Schools of St. Benedict to St. Benedict Preparatory Schools, we saw a need to update our course offerings to align our program with the end goal of preparing students well for the top colleges in the US.  Also, after surveying the current HS students, it was clear that students were wanting more options, more challenge, and more learning opportunities. We’ve heard our students clearly, and we are pleased to offer our new course, schedule and calendar to meet the needs of the 21^st century learners.

The new graduation requirements are effective beginning with the class of 2014, the incoming ninth grade class. In order to graduate from St. Benedict Preparatory High School, students will be required to pass

In order to graduation, all students must earn at least 24 credits.  All students must earn:

4 credits in Theology                                      

4.5 credits in English 

3 credits in Mathematics

3 credits in Science

3 credits in Social Sciences**                         

2.5 credits in P.E./Health (0.5 credit per school year for PE/ 0.5 for Health)                                      

2 credits in the same Foreign Language (Spanish or French)

1 credit in Fine Arts                                       

1 credit in Digital Technology Application                       

0.5 credit in Bengal Prep Course

10 hours of service yearly                              

1 credit in ACT Prep Course (JR Year Trimesters 1 & 2)

“Pass” on U.S. and Illinois Constitution Tests

**to include 1 in U.S. History and 1 in World History

Beginning with the Class of 2010; 2.5 credits required in Social Studies are United States History, World History, and American Government and Constitution  plus .5 Social Studies elective for three credits.

Beginning with the 2010 – 2011 school year Speech will be listed as an English credit and must be taken by all students as a Graduation requirement and every student will need to take at least 1 Trimester of PE.

Though no one can dispute the value and importance of high standards, the new requirements present some significant challenges, especially if they want to have more electives and options. Students on a traditional six or seven hour day will be hard-pressed to include the elective classes they want after scheduling the required courses.  Students who fail required courses will find it difficult or impossible to graduate on time. Due to these challenges, last spring, the SBPS administration, began exploring alternative schedules to meet our high expectations while offering diverse course options that students want.

The trimester schedule divides the school year into three 12 or 13-week terms instead of the traditional schedule of two 18-week semesters. Students take five courses per day instead of six or seven and have 70-minute class periods instead of the current 48-minute periods. This schedule benefits our students in a number of ways.

• Students have more course options, especially for electives.
• Students ideally have only three of the four core classes (English, math, science, and social studies) per trimester.
• Students have more manageable class loads (5 classes instead of 6 or 7).
• Students see fewer teachers per day, giving them an opportunity to develop closer relationships.
• Students have more time in class to get individual attention from teachers.
• Students have more time for active engagement and participation, in the form of labs, projects, small group discussions, technology integration and other activities.
• Students will have the opportunity to improve ACT test scores through course offerings (Students who had taken the ACT Prep class in the past had improved their test scores.  By requiring ALL Juniors to take this call, we hope to continue the improvement of the ACT scores and allow you student acceptance to the college of their choice.)
• Students taking AP courses, PACC (dual college-credit courses) or a performing arts course will have three trimesters during which they can best prepare and develop their skills.

Research on the impact of the trimester schedule is compelling, so compelling that many schools across the State of Michigan have adopted or are adopting this schedule to give their students the best educational opportunities.  Many schools throughout the country have moved to trimester schedules and have seen great benefits and flexibility. We intend to continue to improve our program by implementing trimesters as well.