Academic Policies

Add/Drop Policy

Students have a one week add/drop period at the beginning of the semester to add or drop classes. Any student adding or dropping a course must submit an add/drop permission slip signed by both the teacher and a parent. Core academic classes can only be dropped in special instances. Schedule changes requesting a period shift of existing classes will not be granted unless it moves the student to a smaller class size.  Our goal as a school is to create optimal learning environments for all students, so we strive to keep class sizes consistently minimized.  

After the one week add/drop period, a course will only be added or dropped with special permission from the teacher and administration. Students who add a course after it has begun must make up all required coursework within a reasonable amount of time. Classes dropped within the acceptable time limits will not be credited to the student, and a semester grade will not show on their report card. Classes dropped after the add/drop period will be placed on the student’s transcripts as either withdrawn-passing or withdrawn-failing.  When extreme medical issues arise, CLS administration may choose to apply a withdrawn-medical designation.

Final Exam Weights

Final Exams will be weighted as follows:

9th-12th Grades

Final exams will be worth 20% of the overall semester grade.

7th-8th Grades

Final exams will be worth 15% of the overall semester grade.  However, 7th or 8th-grade students in high school level classes will have final exams weighted at 20%.

Grading Periods & Report Cards

Final grades are reported on a cumulative semester system.  Report cards will be posted on MyCLS at the end of each semester.  It is advised that parents and students check MyCLS throughout the semester to stay informed on academic progress.  We also recommend that parents go to the "Notifications" tab under their account settings and activate the options to receive email or text alerts when their student has a missing assignment.

In extenuating circumstances where students are unable to complete all coursework and final exams by the end of the semester, an "Incomplete" will be recorded on the report card/transcript.  Students should make necessary arrangements with their teacher to complete all remaining work in a timely manner.

Homework/Late Work Policy

As a college prep school, our goal is to prepare students for the demands of higher education and to teach students to become independent, self-motivated learners. For these reasons, we believe that a limited amount of homework is necessary to prepare students for the rigors of college coursework. Failure to complete homework on time may result in lower academic grades. 

Middle School Accountability

7th-grade students who fail a Math course may be required to make up the course in the Virtual Academy or in the traditional classroom the following school year.  8th-grade students who fail Pre-Algebra will not be permitted to retake the course in the traditional classroom as a high school student.  Instead, they will be required to take the course through the  Virtual Academy which requires an additional fee. A middle school student who fails any core courses will be scheduled in the LSC for additional support during the following term. If three or more core classes are failed, the student may be required to repeat the grade level based on teacher recommendations, standardized testing scores, and other factors.

Testing Out of Courses

CLS offers a Test Out option to students.  This option is designed for students to move ahead into courses that best fit their academic ability level.  With school approval, a student may test out of a class by passing a placement exam or taking the final exam and receiving an 80% or higher on both semester exams.  Students are responsible for acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary for the exam and only a single attempt will be permitted.  The course will not be shown on the transcript and therefore will not bear any credit or be calculated into the GPA.  Since the Test Out option does not generate credits, it cannot be utilized to fulfill graduation requirements.  

Requests for the Test Out option must be submitted to the guidance department no later than Oct 1st for second-semester courses or May 1st for the following year’s courses.  Requests cannot occur while a student is currently enrolled in the course or has been previously enrolled in the course. 

Course Retake Policy

Worship Arts, Physical Education, and some Fine Arts courses may be taken multiple times for full credit each semester.

If a student passes a course but is unsatisfied with the grade and learning acquired, they may be permitted to retake the class.  The original attempt will still remain on the transcript, but the grade will be replaced with a "Pass" designation and therefore will no longer be calculated into the student's GPA. 

If a student fails a course needed for graduation, they will be required to retake the course.  The course can be retaken in the classroom or virtually at an additional cost.  The original attempt and grade will remain on the transcript and be calculated into the GPA.

External Credit Policy

Students may apply for up to four credits of external study to count towards the completion of elective credits required for graduation.  Only elective courses may be taken for external credit.  Courses offered at Christian Life School will not be approved for external credit.

All external credits must come from accredited programs approved by the guidance department.  Students must apply for external credit in advance to determine the appropriate credit value and weighting to be granted on the CLS transcript.  No credit will be given without an application and administrative approval.  To apply for external credit, a student must meet with their counselor prior to taking the course and complete an "External Credit" form.  Students must provide a complete course description, including information about the accredited institution, the program or course content, and the number of contact hours.  Contact hours will determine the number of credits shown on the CLS transcript with each semester-long course receiving 0.5 CLS credits.

Upon completion of the course, the student must produce an official transcript from the program to be sent to the registrar at Christian Life School.  Unofficial transcripts will not be accepted.  The approval process must be completed before the course is taken or Christian Life School credit may not be given. 

Home school courses completed while a student is enrolled full-time at Christian Life School or part-time with the intent to graduate from Christian Life School will not be accepted as external credit.

Transfer Student Credits

The records of transfer students will be evaluated with letter grades being converted to our percentage system and GPAs calculated according to CLS policies.  Specifically, AP and Dual Enrollment courses will be transferred as weighted credit since their academic requirements are recognized and accredited by outside collegiate organizations.  However, to maintain equal opportunities for all CLS students, honors courses transferred to CLS will only be recognized with weighted credit for courses in which CLS also offers a complimentary honors course.  All other credits that fall outside of these policies on AP, Dual Enrollment, and Honors will not be weighted.

Graduation requirements regarding Spiritual Formations credits and Community Service will be adjusted for transfer students.  Specifically, students who transfer to Christian Life after their freshman year will have Spiritual Formations requirements waived for the years they were not attending Christian Life.  Transfer students are also responsible for community service hours only during the time they are in attendance at Christian Life School. 

Honor Roll

Students are eligible for the honor roll each semester. Honor roll students will be determined by the following grade point averages: 

4.0 – 3.66: High Honors

3.0 – 3.65: Honor Roll

Honors-Level Courses

Honors courses are made available in high school through a placement process. This process includes a team of educators reviewing student course grades, teacher recommendations, GPA, Standardized test scores, and IXL data.  By using multiple data points, this team of school staff members considers the overall readiness of students to be successful in advanced-level work.  When scheduling season arrives, students will be automatically placed in the level that is determined to be the appropriate fit based on the data points. If a student is placed in an honors-level course but does not wish to take on this additional academic challenge, schedule changes can be made through the school counselor or LSC. If a student's grades, behaviors, or work habits do not reflect the classroom expectations for an honors-level course, the student may be removed from the course and placed into the traditional-level course instead.

MyCLS 

MyCLS is Christian Life School’s learning management system and is an essential element of our learning environment. Students will be required to use MyCLS for checking grades, managing classwork, and submitting assignments. Parents should use MyCLS to monitor grades and academic performance.  It is highly recommended that parents adjust their settings in MyCLS to receive notifications of missing work.

Testing

Standardized achievement tests are given to students every year. Test dates are announced in advance. A copy of the test results is sent home to the parents.

K – 8th grades: MAP testing

9th-10th grades: PreACT

11th grade: PSAT (optional), ACT  

12th grade: Optional ACT

Courses for College Credit

Dual Enrollment

Students have the opportunity to receive college credit for certain courses designated as dual enrollment.  Students who take these classes receive college credits that are transferrable to many colleges and universities.  Since these are college courses, they will be the start of your college transcript and will only be awarded credit in college for a grade of a C or above. 

Advanced Placement

Students have the opportunity to complete Advanced Placement courses in many subject areas.  The content of these courses is determined by the College Board.  Students who do well on the end-of-course exam may receive college credit at many colleges and universities.  College admission programs many also look favorably upon courses designated AP, as they represent more rigor than the standard high school class.

Students who register for an AP course will have their tuition accounts charged an additional fee in the fall to cover the cost of the AP exam.   If students decide not to take the exam after the fall deadline set by the College Board, they will be charged a $40 cancellation fee per the College Board's policy.  If a student chooses not to participate in the AP exam at the end of the course, the student will still receive credit for the course and toward cum laude honors as long as the student completes the course.  

Academic Support

Christian Life School offers multiple tiers of academic support to students.  The first tier involves teacher support within the classroom.  The second is the Learning Success Center which exists to provide a wide range of helpful resources, including educational support and tutoring.  

The third tier of academic support utilizes the Virtual Academy which provides differentiated instruction for students requiring a different academic track, or who need to recover credits from a previously failed course. There is an additional fee for participating in this program.  

Learning Success Center

Christian Life School provides the opportunity for students to receive additional academic support outside of the regular classroom to all students who add the Learning Success Center (LSC) to their daily schedule.  The Learning Success Center:

• Provides a quiet workspace during the school day for students to study and complete homework

• Offers additional academic and study support with targeted support in Math and English for students needing assistance

• Assists students with time management skills and encourages homework completion

Early Graduation & Delayed Graduation

Early Graduation

Students who wish to graduate early should meet with the school counselor to determine eligibility.  If it is determined that the student can meet graduation requirements earlier than the scheduled semester of graduation, the student and parent must meet with the school counselor to finalize arrangements.

 Delayed Graduation

Any student who has not met graduation requirements but has completed at least 23 credits by the last class day of their senior year will be permitted to walk at the graduation ceremony.  Any student with fewer than 23 credits on that day will not be allowed to participate in the ceremony.  In either case, the student's diploma will be withheld until all graduation requirements are met.  Any student that has not met graduation requirements by the last day of his or her senior year will be required to complete his or her remaining courses as a Christian Life School Distance Learning student.  That student will have one year from the last day of their senior year to complete his or her coursework.  If the coursework is not complete by that date, the student will not be permitted to graduate from Christian Life School.  Diplomas will only be issued upon completion of all graduation requirements.

Latin Honors System

In alignment with our mission of preparing students spiritually, socially, and academically, we want to recognize students who are achieving excellence in multiple areas such as service, school involvement, and academic challenge.  Therefore, Christian Life School uses the Latin system to honor students for the following accomplishments:

Summa Cum Laude:  Students with a weighted grade point average of 4.1 and above, 4 semesters of extra-curricular school activities, 4 credits of AP/Dual Enrollment classes, and 60 hours of service will receive a gold honors cord and stole.

Magna Cum Laude:  Students with a weighted grade point average of 3.9-4.09, 3 semesters of extra-curricular school activities, 3 credits of AP/Dual Enrollment classes, and 60 hours of service will receive a silver honors cord and stole.

Cum Laude:  Students with a weighted grade point average of 3.7-3.89, 2 semesters of extra-curricular school activities, 2 credits of AP/Dual Enrollment classes, and 60 hours of service will receive a white honors cord and stole.

*Due to the addition of honors courses, beginning with the class of 2028, GPA requirements for Latin Honors will increase to the following: Summa Cum Laude: 4.2 and above, Magna Cum Laude: 4.0-4.19, Cum Laude: 3.8-3.99 

Additional Information:

• Honors are based on accomplishments in 9th-12th grades. Transfer students' records from previous schools will be included in their calculations according to CLS policies and standards of calculation.

• Latin awards will be calculated at the end of the 7th semester (end of 1st semester senior year). Conditions for qualification must be completed by that time with the exception of service hours which will be given an extended deadline on the Laude application.  Current enrollment in AP/DE courses qualifies for Latin Honors.

• Each semester of an AP/DE course counts as 0.5 credits.

• Extra-curricular school activities include participation in athletics, membership in official clubs and organizations, and fine arts activities such as musicals and plays.  All extracurricular groups must be official, school-sanctioned, and include an attendance record indicating a minimum attendance rate of 75%. Extra-curricular activities which are not part of CLS will not be accepted. Transfer students interested in qualifying for honors must provide official documentation of extracurricular participation at their previous school(s).

• Service hours will be prorated at 15 hours per year based on years of attendance at CLS.  Therefore, students who were not enrolled at Christian Life for all 4 years of high school can still earn a Laude recognition with less than 60 hours of service.  Also, required service hours are NOT in addition to the 12 hours per year required for graduation or hours earned for National Honors Society.  Instead, hours may coincide.

• Seniors who attend part-time are eligible for Latin honors; however, all extracurricular, service, and academic requirements remain fully in effect, regardless of the number of classes a senior might take.

• Two Summa Cum Laude students will be given the opportunity to speak at graduation. Laude students interested in speaking will submit proposed speeches to a committee of faculty members. The committee members will select the top two speeches for presentation at graduation.