General Academic Information
Graduation Requirements
Believers Academy currently offers three diploma options: the BASIC GRADUATE DIPLOMA, intended to prepare students for entry into somewhat less competitive colleges, the STANDARD GRADUATE DIPLOMA, intended to prepare students for entry into more competitive colleges, and the HONORS DIPLOMA, intended to provide students with even greater depth in two or more selected fields of study. In order to graduate from the academy, a student must :
- successfully complete all courses required by the core curriculum,
- successfully complete the appropriate Foundations of Education course for each semester he is enrolled in Believers Academy as a high school student,
- maintain a grade point average of 2.00 or above,
- take the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) as a junior or senior and submit the scores to the academy,
- meet the residency requirements (as described below), and
- meet any other requirements that are specific to the diploma he is seeking to earn.
The Core Curriculum
All graduates must earn 129 credit hours (21.5 standard credits) by successfully completing all of the following courses:
- COMPUTER APPLICATIONS: 6 credit hours (1 standard credit) of basic computer applications
- ENGLISH: 27 credit hours (4.5 standard credits) in English, 24 from the general English core and 3 from Speech (English electives, such as journalism, do not meet the core curriculum requirements)
- FINE ARTS: 3 credit hours (0.5 standard credit) of Fine Arts
- FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION: 24 credit hours (4 standard credits)
- HEALTH: 3 credit hours (0.5 standard credit)
- MATHEMATICS: 18 credit hours (3 standard credits), including Algebra 1 and Algebra 2
- NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGES: 6 credit hours (1 standard credit) in a foreign language
- PHYSICAL EDUCATION: 12 credit hours (2 standard credits)
- SCIENCE: 12 credit hours (2 standard credits), specifically Introduction to Physics and Chemistry and Biology
- SOCIAL STUDIES: 18 credit hours (3 standard credits), including World History 1, U.S. History, Government, and Economics
Diploma Plans
In addition to successfully completing all courses listed in the core curriculum, a student must earn additional credits, as described below, to complete a specific diploma plan.
The Basic Graduate Diploma
The Basic Graduate Diploma is intended to prepare students for entry into junior colleges and somewhat less competitive four-year colleges. In addition to successfully completing the core curriculum, a student must earn 9 credit hours (1.5 standard credits) in general elective credit, excluding P. E. or Athletics, for a minimum total of 138 credit hours (or 23 standard credits).
The Standard Graduate Diploma
The Standard Graduate Diploma is intended to prepare students for entry into more competitive four-year colleges and universities. In order to earn the Standard Graduate Diploma, a student who entered as a Freshman before the 2007-2008 school year must successfully complete 6 credit hours (1 standard credit) of Advanced Math (MATH 331 and 332, a course which will also satisfy one of the core curriculum requirements) as well as earning 6 additional credit hours (1 standard credit) in intermediate (200 level) Non-English Languages, 6 additional credit hours (1 standard credit) in either Physics or Chemistry, and 6 additional credit hours (1 standard credit) of other Social Studies course work, for a minimum total of 147 credit hours (or 24.5 standard credits).
Freshmen entering the school in the fall of 2007 or later must complete a total of 24 credit hours (4 standard credits) of mathematics, to include either standard or honors Advanced Math, 12 credit hours (2 standard credits) of the same non-English language, 24 credit hours (4 standard credits) of science, consisting of IPC, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics, and 24 credit hours (4 standard credits) in Social Studies, consisting of World History, World Geography, U.S. History, Government, and Economics.
The Honors Diploma
The Honors Diploma is intended not only to prepare students for entry into more competitive four-year colleges and universities but also to provide them with greater depth or breadth in two or more selected disciplines or fields of study. All honors students must fulfill the requirements for the Standard Graduate Diploma and earn honors standing in at least two different academic disciplines or fields of study in order to receive an Honors Diploma. To earn honors standing in a given academic discipline or field of study, they may either
- Earn at least 6 credit hours (1 standard credit) of honors-level, upper-division course work in that discipline or field or
- Earn at least 6 additional upper-division credit hours (1 standard credit) in that discipline or field. In some disciplines, specific courses may be required for earning honors standing by earning additional upper-division credit hours.
All upper division courses used to satisfy the requirements for earning honors standing in a given discipline or field of study must be taken in residence at the academy. Furthermore, in order to receive an Honors Diploma, a student must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or higher and a GPA of 3.00 or higher in all courses in the disciplines in which he is earning honors standing. Please note that some courses required for the completion of honors concentrations are offered only when there is sufficient student interest.
Residency Requirement
In order to receive any of the diplomas offered, ALL candidates must register for and successfully complete on campus a minimum of 24 credit hours (roughly equivalent to 4 standard credits) from the upper-division core courses during the senior year, or alternatively, a minimum of 12 credit hours (roughly equivalent to 2 standard credits), of which at least 9 credit hours (roughly equal to 1.5 standard credits) are from the upper-division core courses, for each semester of their junior and senior years.
Ranking of Valedictorian and Salutatorian
A student must attend the academy for his or her junior and senior years and earn a Standard or Honors diploma in order to be named the class valedictorian or salutatorian. A student earning an Honors Diploma will be ranked above a student earning a Standard Diploma should the two students have otherwise equal GPAs. Should two students with equivalent diploma plans have equal GPAs, the student having taken the most courses at Believers Academy will be ranked above the student who took fewer.
Transfer of Credits
Students wishing to transfer high school credit from another school for use toward earning a Diploma at Believers Academy should make their request in writing by submitting the proper form to the Academic Advisor. Approval of such transfers shall be a function of the Academic Affairs Committee. Each High School course (9th-12th grade) requested as a transfer credit toward a BA Diploma will be processed in terms of the following equivalents:
- 0.5 standard credit from a conventional school = 3 credit hours at BA
- 1 standard credit from a conventional school = 6 credit hours at BA
- Each complete semester course in a non-accredited school, a home school, or an umbrella school program will be individually evaluated for transfer of credit based on a general equivalency and mastery of course content.
The institution which awarded the credit will determine the level of the credit (i.e., courses defined as sub-freshman level course by the institution granting the credit normally will not be accepted as high school credit by BA). While credit may be granted for transferred courses, actual course grades earned at any other institution, including a home school, will not be recognized by BA. Only those courses in which the student earned a “C” or above (as the institution awarding the grade would define it) will be accepted for transfer credit.
Credit(s) used to satisfy prerequisites for BA courses must be properly transferred before an entering student will be allowed to register for a BA course requiring such a prerequisite.
Credit for Varsity Athletics
Students may participate in varsity sports either as a strictly extra-curricular activity or as a means of earning high school physical education activity credit at the rate of two (2) credit hours (roughly equivalent to 1/3 standard credit) per sport. Those students electing to earn P. E. credit through athletics must register and pay the tuition for the appropriate course and must satisfactorily complete a full season in the sport for which they registered. These credit hours may be applied toward meeting the graduation requirement of 9 credit hours (1.5 standard credits) in high school physical education activity. However, they may not be defined as “core” courses for the purpose of meeting any requirements, such as the residency requirement, defined in whole or in part in terms of core courses. Students may not earn more than 10 credit hours through participation in varsity athletics.
Course Load Limits
Secondary students may not register for more than 18 credit hours of core courses (equivalent to 3 standard credits) or 24 total credit hours (roughly equivalent to 4 standard credits) in any standard semester without administrative approval.
Adding and Dropping Courses
Courses may be added to a student's initial registration no later than the end of the first full week of classes, provided that the student is in good standing with the school and that space for him is available in the desired course(s). A student may drop a course before the end of the fifth full week of classes in any given semester without having the dropped course affect his GPA or appear on his transcript. Should he drop a course after this time but before the end of the ninth full week of classes, a record of his enrollment will appear on the transcript and he will receive a grade of WP (withdrew passing) or WF (withdrew failing); this grade will have no impact on the student's GPA. All students still enrolled in a course following the ninth full week of classes will receive a grade for the course in accordance with the standard course grading system. Students who withdraw completely from the academy may, at the discretion of the administration, receive grades of I (incomplete) for all courses dropped at the time of withdrawal.