Official Parent Notification: Pass / No Pass Grades (AB 104)

On July 1, 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 104, which provides significant opportunities for all students, but particularly for high school students. High school students may request that a letter grade from the 2020-2021 school year be changed to a Pass or No Pass grade. Certain 2020-2021 high school juniors and seniors are allowed to graduate without meeting all local graduation requirements; and schools are required to provide additional supports towards graduation including a fifth year of high school, credit recovery, or some other opportunity to complete State graduation requirements. The bill also provides parents of “eligible pupils” a supplemental review process to consider retention at the 2020-2021 grade level, if desired. AB 104 requires schools and districts to grant a request from a high school student to change a letter grade to a Pass or No Pass grade for a course during the 2020-2021 school year, without input from the student’s teacher. (Ed. Code, § 49066.5, added by AB 104.) The number or type of courses eligible for this transcript adjustment cannot be limited by the school or district, and the grade change cannot negatively impact a student’s grade point average. To request a grade change to a Pass/No Pass grade, a student or parent of a minor student must submit the Grade Change Application Form to the District within 15 days of the application becoming available. The Grade Change Application Form can be accessed using this LINK. The applications will be due no later than midnight on Sunday, August 15, 2021. The bill also requires the California State University (CSU) and requests the University of California (UC) and private colleges to accept Pass or No Pass grades on a student’s transcript for those courses taken during the 2020–21 school year. It is important to note, however, that some postsecondary educational institutions, including those in other states, may not accept a Pass or No Pass grade instead of a letter grade for admission purposes. The list of postsecondary institutions in California that will accept, for admission purposes, a transcript with a Pass or No Pass grade instead of a letter grade is included at the end of this message. Students will have 15 calendar days following the school or district’s posting and notice to make any grade change requests. Schools and districts will have 15 calendar days after receiving a student’s request to change the transcript and notify the student and the parent/guardian of the change. Finally, AB 104 provides that schools and districts must allow high school students who were in their third or fourth year of high school during the 2020-2021 school year, and who were not on track to graduate in four years, to be exempt from all of the LEA’s graduation requirements that exceed statewide requirements. (Ed. Code, § 51225, added by AB 104.) These students must still meet statewide coursework requirements to graduate and can be provided the opportunity to do so through completion of a fifth year of high school instruction, credit recovery, or some other manner. Additionally, AB 104 requires schools and districts to meet and consult with a parent/guardian within 30 calendar days after receiving a written request for an “eligible pupil” to be retained in the same grade level for the 2021-2022 school year. An “eligible pupil” is defined as a student who has received a D, F, or No Pass grade for at least one-half of the student’s coursework in the 2020-2021 school year, but does not include a pupil enrolled in grade 12 during the 2020-21 school year. During this consultation, the school must discuss all available learning recovery options, including access to retake prior semester courses where the student received the deficient grades, and other interventions and supports. The consultation must include research on the effects of pupil retention, which may include the multiple studies and evidence collected by the CDE that retention “does not produce higher achievement.” The school must notify the parent/guardian of a final determination of the student’s retention within 10 calendar days of the consultation. Notably, this new retention consultation and review process is supplemental to, but does not replace, the district’s existing policy on retention. For the 2020–21 through 2023–24 school year, the following postsecondary institutions that will accept, for admission purposes, a transcript with a Pass or No Pass grade instead of a letter grade for an applicant pursuant to Education Code Section 49066.5(b). California State University Schools:

California State University, Bakersfield
California State University Channel Islands
California State University, Chico
California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, East Bay
California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fullerton
Humboldt State University
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University Maritime Academy
California State University, Monterey Bay
California State University, Northridge
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State University, Sacramento
California State University, San Bernardino
San Diego State University
San Francisco State University
San José State University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
California State University San Marcos
Sonoma State University
California State University, Stanislaus

University of California (UC) Schools:

UC Berkeley
UC Davis
UC Irvine
UC Los Angeles
UC Merced
UC Riverside
UC San Diego
UC San Francisco
UC Santa Barbara
UC Santa Cruz

Private Universities:

Saint Mary's College of California
Holy Names University
Pitzer College
University of La Verne
Westmont College
Santa Clara University
University of Saint Katherine
University of Southern California
ArtCenter College of Design
California Baptist University
University of San Francisco
La Sierra University
Mount Saint Mary's University

If you have questions about any of this, please reach out to your child’s school, or the Education Services Department at 415-493-4250.