Course Guides & Graduation Information

DIPLOMA DISTINCTIONS ARE REPORTED IN THE GRADUATION PROGRAM ONLY.  These distinctions (except for the Seal of Biliteracy) ARE NOT noted on the transcript. The highest earned distinction will receive a sticker indication on the diploma.  

WILLIAMSON COUNTY SCHOOLS HONORS DIPLOMA

To earn a Williamson County Honors Diploma, students shall complete the core curriculum and four credits of science, plus the additional path requirements which include an elective focus. Except as described in this paragraph, course requirements for the Williamson County Honors Diploma are the same as for the regular diploma. A minimum of 14 credits must be at Honors or Advanced Placement level or through dual enrollment as described below. Students must qualify for Latin honors by having a 3.75 or higher academic average. Students who are accepted for dual enrollment or early admission to a college or university may have college courses considered for meeting the 14-honors credit requirement if the course taken at the college level is offered at the Honors or Advanced Placement level by WCS. When a student receives a high school pass/fail credit at the middle school level, the credit will be counted as an honors class toward meeting the Williamson County Honors Diploma requirement if the class was taught at the honors level. Otherwise, the course will be listed as high school credit but will not count toward meeting the Williamson County Honors Diploma requirement.

RAVENWOOD HIGH SCHOOL HONORS DIPLOMA

Ravenwood students who have met the the core requirements as well as the following course requirements: 4 years of science and 3 years of the same foreign language sequence (when offered; e.g. ASL, Chinese). In addition, the student must have a 3.0 GPA or higher, a minimum of five Advanced Placement courses, and all honors courses must be taken when offered.

WILLIAMSON COUNTY DISTINCTION

Students shall be recognized as graduating with district distinction if they have met the graduation requirements, have obtained an overall grade point average of at least a 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale, and have earned an industry certification in his or her career interest category or a regionally-recognized industry certification. 

TENNESSEE HONORS

Students who score at or above all of the subject readiness benchmarks on the ACT or equivalent score on the SAT will graduate with honors. The ACT benchmarks are as follows:

English - 18

Math - 22

Reading - 22

Science - 23

TENNESSEE DISTINCTION

Students will be recognized as graduating with "state distinction" by attaining a B average or better and completing at least one of the following:

• Earn a national and/or state recognized industry certification

• Participate in at least one of the Governor's Schools

• Participate in one of the state's All State musical organizations

• Earn statewide recognition or award at a skill- or knowledge-based state tournament, convention, or competition hosted by a statewide student organization and/or qualify for national recognition by a national student organization

• Be selected as a National Merit Finalist or Semi-Finalist

• Attain a score of 31 or higher composite score on the ACT

• Attain a score of 3 or higher on at least two Advanced Placement exams

• Successfully complete the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

• Earn 12 or more hours of post-secondary credit

TENNESSEE TRI STAR SCHOLAR

A student who earns a composite score of nineteen (19) or higher on the ACT, or an equivalent score on the SAT, and earns a capstone industry certification as promoted by the Department of Education, shall be recognized as a Tennessee Tri-Star Scholar upon graduation from high school. The student shall be noted as a Tennessee Tri-Star Scholar in the school's graduation program and will receive a certificate from the school. 

COMMUNITY SERVICE 

Students who voluntarily complete at least ten (10) hours of community service each semester the student is in attendance at a public high school, shall be recognized in the graduation program. 

NATIONAL CAREER READINESS 

Students graduating with a gold or platinum medal on National Career Readiness Certificate (WorkKeys) shall be recognized in the graduation program. See ACT website for assessment information. 

WORK ETHIC DISTINCTION 

Students who earn a minimum of 20 points out of a possible 40 points on the industry developed employability standards as well as a regular high school diploma shall be recognized in the graduation program.

AP CAPSTONE DIPLOMA 

Students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research and on four additional AP Exams of their choosing receive the AP Capstone Diploma. 

AP RESEARCH CERTIFICATE 

Students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research but not on four additional AP Exams receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate. 

SEAL OF BILITERACY -  (This distinction does go on the students diploma and transcript)

WCS will recognize students who have obtained high levels of proficiency (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) in one language (or more) and English by awarding the Seal of Biliteracy to high school seniors who have met the following criteria. A seal will be placed on the student's diploma. It is the responsibility of the student to submit all evidence for approval via district instructions by the set deadline. the WCS Seal of Biliteracy Silver Award will be granted to students who: 

A. Demonstrate evidence of English proficiency by earning a WCS weighted cumulative GPA in required English Language Arts courses of at least a 3.0 AND one (1) of the following ways by: 

• Scoring at least on-track on each English Language Arts End of Course assessment OR

•  Scoring at least a 3 on the Advanced Placement English Language or English Literature Exam or a 4 on the English International Baccalaureate Exam OR

• Scoring at least a 22 on the ACT Reading subtest OR 

• Scoring at least a 4.5 (cumulative) on the WIDA Access (ESL students only)

B. Demonstrate evidence of proficiency in a second language in one (1) of the following

ways by:

• Scoring at least Intermediate-Mid on an ACTFL-recognized exam in all 3 modes of communication OR 

• Scoring at least a 5 on a world language Advanced Placement exam or a 6 on a world language International Baccalaureate Exam OR 

• Scoring at least Intermediate-Mid (or the equivalent) on a foreign government's approved non-English exam or another country's secondary level exam 

C. Demonstrates evidence of intercultural Engagement from (at least) one of the following suggested services, events, or activities via a one-page reflection (contact the district's world language curriculum specialist for pre-approval): 

• Host a student from a target country in your home

• Plan an event to benefit or celebrate the target language community

• Active membership in a world language Honor's society

• Tutor an ESL student for a semester+

• Work for a business that requires use of English and the 2nd language

Industry 4.0 

The Tennessee Department of Education has recently announced the launch of the Industry 4.0 Diploma Distinction. The Industry 4.0 Diploma Distinction is available for students starting in the 2023-24 school year. This distinction was developed for high school students who are interested in pursuing a career in a high-need, high-skill industry after graduation.  Students who earn the Industry 4.0 Diploma Distinction will be more prepared to seamlessly transition into the workforce.

To Earn the Industry 4.0 Diploma Distinction, students must:

· Notify their counselor of their intent to pursue the distinction by the end of their sophomore year

· Register with a regional American Job Center or their school counselor

· Enroll in Work Based Learning or dual enrollment courses for their junior year

· Meet with their counselor and/or a career coach who meets at least once per month beginning in their junior year

· Enroll in Work-Based Learning or dual enrollment courses for their senior year

For more information, please contact your high school counselor before the end of your sophomore year. 

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***Students are responsible for self-reporting and submitting all evidence that they have fulfilled the requirements for each distinction which will be verified by the counseling department. ***

All Distinctions and Honors information for WCS can be found online here: https://www.wcs.edu/cms/lib/TN50000578/Centricity/Domain/961/Graduation%20Distinctions.pdf