High School Planning

Developing a 4-Year Plan of Study

As students begin to develop goals for their future it is important to understand the expectations of each option. The following will address those expectations. 

Factors in high school that are important for each student’s future include the following:

1. The selection of courses while in high school. Some required courses are leveled in order to better meet the individual needs of students. The general guideline for changing a course level requires student, teacher, parent and administrator support. If parents have questions about the placement of their student(s), they should contact the counselor.

2. The grades received which determine the grade point average.

3. The attendance record which includes both absenteeism and tardiness.

4. The activities in which a student has participated both in and out of school.

5. The personal recommendations of teachers, counselors, and administrators.

A plan of study is a schedule of the required and elective courses a student plans to take during each year of his/her high school career to meet their graduation requirements and post-high school career goals. It is recommended that a student along with his/her parents and counselor develop an individualized four-year plan of study. 

Counseling Services

Neenah High School's Counseling Department offers a comprehensive school counseling program to help our students achieve their maximum potential and make the educational process as effective as possible. As a part of this program, we serve students, families, and teachers in collaboration with the entire Neenah community.  Specifically, our counseling services include academic counseling, personal counseling, crisis intervention, program & career exploration, and post-graduate planning. Counselors work with students based on the first letter of their last name. Click to learn more about the Wisconsin Comprehensive School Counseling Model.

Schedule Changes

When students request courses during the course selection process, they have contracted to pursue their chosen courses to completion. Students must take responsibility for making informed choices. It is our goal to present course options and help them make wise decisions regarding their high school course selections, which in turn will help them attain their post-high school goals.

Students may be allowed to drop a course without penalty during the first ten days of each semester. After those ten days, any course dropped will result in a grade of FW (Failure Withdrawal). This grade is computed as an F in the student's grade point average. 

Students may add a course during the first three days of each semester. Since schedule changes have a serious effect on class sizes, teacher assignments, and the overall master schedule, they need to be minimized. 

Reasons for which schedule corrections will generally be made include: 

NHS staff clerical error, a senior needs to meet graduation requirements, a requested level change by a teacher and student, student's success or failure in summer school necessitating a change, or the student not meeting the prerequisites for the course.

Early Graduation

The Neenah Board of Education has established a policy for early graduation. Students must:

• complete all graduation requirements.

• have a minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average

• have an average of 95% cumulative daily attendance

• submit application and paperwork by the deadline of October 1 of the preceding school year (application available in the counseling office)

• obtain letters of recommendation for early graduation from their parents, counselor, and principal stating that early graduation is in their best interest

• have a written career plan including why they wish to graduate early and what they plan to do after graduation.

• meet with their counselor if planning on attending a 4-year university (Some universities do not accept early graduates.)

Student Exchange Program Procedures

NHS students participating in exchange programs are expected to satisfy all Neenah High School graduation requirements. The equivalent of one credit of senior-level English must be taken prior to or during the exchange experience. Students planning to participate in an exchange program during their senior year must enroll in American Government prior to their exchange year. Student's grades as an exchange student in a recognized program are not used in calculating the student’s grade-point average. Interested students are encouraged to discuss exchange opportunities with their school counselors.

High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED)

Students are required by law to remain in school until they are 18 years old unless they graduate first.  Students who will not graduate, due to the lack of credits, may pursue a High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED) at Fox Valley Technical College provided they are 18 years and 6 months old or their class has graduated from high school.  To be eligible for the HSED, a student must receive a passing score on the five tests of General Education Development (GED) and meet additional requirements in health and social studies. Your school counselors have more information.

Special Programs Offered at the High School

Complete information regarding the special programs offered at Neenah High School is located in the course descriptions section of this book, under Additional Course Options.

These programs are:

1. Services For Students With Disabilities (Special Education Courses)

2. Special education services for students with speech and language disabilities, hearing impairments, visual impairments, orthopedic impairments, autism, traumatic brain injury, and other health impairments.

3. Neenah’s Employment & Academic Training Program (NEAT)

4. Work Force Development (Work Experience Program)