Some Louisiana high school students may have to work harder to fund their college education in the near future. The Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance has added another TOPS requirement, which high school students will have to complete to be eligible for the award. According to a Student Affairs committee report, high school students, beginning with the graduating class of 2008, will be required to enter a four-year college with an additional advanced math or science unit, boosting the total core curriculum units to 17.5. The changed was proposed by the Louisiana Legislature in 2004. Kevin Hardy, communications director for the Board of Regents, said this change was implemented to ensure high school students have taken the necessary classes to prepare for the rigors of college courses. “It was determined by Regents research that students who have taken a science or math class throughout their entire four years of high school are more likely to be successful in college and actually graduate,” Hardy said. “It was only logical to increase the requirements to increase the quality of the students.” Hardy said the change is intended to stop counterproductive practices. “We gave students the opportunity to come to college and prove themselves, but most students did not even graduate,” Hardy said. “Those students would go to school for one or two years and leave without the necessary credentials to get a good job. And it ends up to be a waste of time and state-funded money.” Hardy said the Legislature and Board of Regents are trying to encourage students to take advantage of the time they have in high school to prepare themselves for college-level work. “In some cases, some high school seniors have already finished all of their core classes by their junior year,” Hardy said. “This poses a problem because some of these students are not challenged anymore. They only take a few classes and then go home early everyday.” Hardy said this can damage students because they are not focused enough on the challenges that lie ahead of them in college. “If a student has not taken a math or science since junior year, that student tends to forget things, thus causing a setback in college,” Hardy said. Hardy said he understands it’s possible that some students may have had setbacks and be prevented from taking the extra core unit, but they should plan better and make the most of their high school career. “We know that some students may have failed a course and have to retake it,” Hardy said. “But we want those students to focus to make up where they lack.” Hardy said summer school is always an option, and some students may want to consider entering a junior college first before attending a four-year college or university. “We do not want to exclude anyone from attending a four-year college, but we do encourage students to do whatever is necessary for their success when they come to a university,” Hardy said. “By all means, students should attend a two-year college if it means they can get the essentials to increase their chances of graduating.” The change was approved in 2004 but will not take effect until 2008 to give the affected graduating class four years to meet the requirements. Melanie Amrhein, assistant executive director of the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance, said OSFA is trying to make students aware of the requirement changes. “Our Public Information staff host annual workshops for high school guidance counselors where the TOPS requirements are detailed,” Amrhein said. Amrhein said students can access the information they need on the OSFA Web site, including what advanced math or science classes constitute as valid core requirements. “We hope that through these means the students and parents are knowledgeable about the requirements,” Amrhein said. Hardy said Legislature officials do not foresee this change having an adverse affect on enrollment rates for four-year colleges because the changes complement the requirements most four-year universities in Louisiana already have.
—–Contact Garesia Randle at [email protected]