How to Report Grade 15 (Post-Graduate) Students

Some students remain in school until they age out of the public school system.  Often these are special education students who require additional supports despite completing their secondary education.  Sometimes these students remain as 12^th graders and do not complete school until they age out of the program.  Other times, students will complete high school along with their peers, but will return to the high school after graduation for additional services. 

When to use grade 12 (senior) versus grade 15 (post-grad)

 The difference between reporting a returning student as grade 12 or grade 15 (post-graduate) comes down to the student’s school graduation status.  In short, if the student receives a diploma, that student must be reported as grade 15 in subsequent school years.  However, if the student does NOT receive a diploma, then the student may remain grade 12 until he/she has aged out of school.

EXAMPLE 1:  Taylor was a member of the class of 2019.  She walked with her fellow classmates at graduation in June 2019 and received a standard diploma.  However, Taylor is a special education student and will remain with the district until the age of 22, even though she has already graduated high school. 

• In their 2019 end of year Enrollment, the district will report Taylor with exit code 11, meaning she completed high school.  Her diploma type would be 1 (standard diploma) and her post-graduate plans would be 15 (indicating the student will be returning to high school for post-graduate work). 

• In their 2020 beginning of year Enrollment and all subsequent enrollment submissions, Taylor’s resident district will report Taylor as grade 15. 

EXAMPLE 2:  Clara was also a member of the class of 2019, but she did not walk at graduation and did not receive a diploma or other completion certificate.  Clara, too, will remain with the district until she ages out at 22.

• In the district’s 2019 end of year Enrollment, Clara’s district would report Clara with exit code 1 (meaning the student will be returning to public school the following school year). 

• In the district’s 2020 beginning of year Enrollment, Clara would again be reported as grade 12.  She will continue to be reported as grade 12 in all subsequent enrollment submissions until she either completes high school with a diploma or other completion certificate, or ages out of the public school system.

• If Clara graduates high school before aging out of the program, but stays with the district until she ages out, she would be reported as grade 15 in all subsequent enrollment reports after her graduation.

 Are Grade 15 students eligible for adequacy aid?

NO.

 Grade 15 students have completed their public school education.  They are not eligible for adequacy or differentiated aid, and they do not qualify for charter school tuition. 

Specifics of Grade 15

Once a student has been reported as a graduate (exit code 11, diploma type 1), they can only be reported as Grade 15 in future submissions. If a student has completed high school with a high school diploma, they are, by definition, a post-graduate student. Post-graduates must be reported as grade 15.

Students who have been reported as grade 15 MAY be changed back to grade 12 provided they have not received a high school diploma. A student who has completed high school with a HiSET/GED, Adult Ed Diploma, or completion certificate (such as those provided to special education students who have completed their high school program) are NOT considered high school graduates. If a district has reported a student with one of these certificates as grade 15 and then determines that the student SHOULD be reported as grade 12, the student’s grade level may be changed back to 12. Students who have been graduated with a high school diploma by ANY district can ONLY be reported as grade 15.

Students reported as grade 15 should only be exited with exit code 6. Regardless of the reason for the student’s withdrawal (e.g., they’ve aged out, moved out of state, gone to a different district), the exit code for grade 15 students is exit code 6.

If the student ages out of school during the course of the school year, they must be exited on or near their birthday.