Plan to remove Regents exam requirement could raise RHS graduation rate, superintendent says

A state plan to eliminate the need for students to pass Regents examinations to graduate could help Riverhead students and lead to higher graduation rates, according to Riverhead Central School District Interim Superintendent Cheryl Pedisich.

The proposed changes to the graduation requirements, which were outlined in a blue ribbon commission report to the New York State Board of Regents last month, would allow students to demonstrate their proficiency in a subject in different ways and sunset the standardized testing requirements for a diploma. The Board of Regents, which started studying a change to graduation requirements in 2019, are in the midst of creating a plan to implement the commission’s recommendations.

Pedisich said in an interview this week that the state’s changes could lead to better outcomes in the Riverhead Central School District, where the graduation rate was 82% in 2023 — below the state and Long Island averages.

“I’ve been in special [education] for most of my career, and so I’m very used to individualized education plans to support students and their success,” Pedisich said. “So I look at this as a wonderful opportunity to look at students more individually and give them an opportunity to show achievement in different ways, rather than just by passing a Regents exam.”

According to the blue ribbon commission report, a student can demonstrate their proficiency in a subject through passing an assessment or completing a capstone project, as well as participation in the arts, passing high school courses, completing certain career and technical education (CTE) programs, and earning college credits while in high school. 

While the Regents exam requirements would sunset, state assessments would continue to be administered as a requirement of federal education law, which mandates standardized testing for certain subjects.

“Not every student is going to be successful necessarily on a Regents exam,” Pedisich said, “but they could show us on project-based learning that they do have these abilities to be college and career ready.”

The new requirements may help students who are coming into the New York State public school system for the first time, particularly immigrants from other countries who have different levels of experience from being educated in other school systems, Pedisich said. More than a quarter of students enrolled in Riverhead High School in the 2023 school year were English language learners.

“It gives us an opportunity to be able to address their more unique needs that they may have and allow them to show competencies in different ways,” she said.

Currently, students can earn three different types of diplomas: a Regents diploma, which demonstrates a student satisfied the minimum state requirements; an advanced Regents diploma, which demonstrates a student passed additional Regents exams; and a local diploma, which in Riverhead can be granted to a student with a learning disability if they fail one or more Regents exams, but meet certain other requirements. Students can also earn certain endorsements and seals on their diplomas that recognize academic achievement in certain subject areas.

Under the commission’s proposal, school districts would only confer one type of diploma, rather than the three a student can earn now based on academic achievement. The school could then grant students certain diploma seals or endorsements based on their academic performance or course competition — including the “advanced” designation.

The state also intends to adopt a six-part “Portrait of a Graduate,” which a student will need to fulfill to earn their diploma. A student would have to demonstrate proficiency in each of its six components. According to the commission, a student who demonstrates proficiency in each component of the portrait will be a critical thinker, an innovative problem solver, literate across all content areas, culturally competent, socially-emotionally competent, an effective communicator and a global citizen.

The state education department is currently crafting an implementation plan for the new graduation requirements. Pedisich said she isn’t sure yet how much local school districts will have to change in order to accommodate the new requirements. 

The interim superintendent said she is concerned about how the district will objectively measure student academic achievement with the new graduation requirements, and hopes that the education department’s guidance will give a clear answer. 

There is also the possibility that the elimination of the Regents exam requirements could reduce what students get out of their education.

“That is definitely a position that some have expressed, and there is concern because they wouldn’t have that uniformity,” Pedisich said. “But I think it really comes down to is how are we going to assess students and make sure that they have those skills that are necessary to be able to be college and career ready?”

There has been debate locally about the value of Regents exams — specifically how much they should be counted in a student’s course average. In Riverhead, Regents exams are weighed as 20% of a student’s final course average for classes that require them, but some want that lowered or eliminated altogether. The Riverhead Board of Education has suspended its Regents exam weighting policy the last three school years and is expected to continue conversations surrounding the policy during the upcoming school year.

Gregory Wallace, president of the Riverhead Central Faculty Association, which represents teachers and guidance counselors, said the union does not have a position on the commission’s proposal. “Education is not static, so whatever changes the state decides to make we will embrace them and continue to work with our students,” he said.

“I’m going to refrain criticism or praise until there’s a concrete implementation,” he said.

The state education department is expected to present an implementation plan, including a timeline and proposed changes to regulations, to the Board of Regents in November for consideration. 

“The bold vision we are advancing today is a direct result of countless hours of collaborative work from an incredibly diverse group of expert practitioners and the public,” state education commissioner Betty Rosa said in a statement last month. “The educational transformation we envision reflects the thoughtful input we received from our stakeholders — particularly from public school students and their families. It takes an incredible amount of time, work, and collaborative effort to transform an education system, and we will not stop working until we get the job done right for all New Yorkers.”