Students meet with Superintendent

NORFOLK, Va. - The Norfolk Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Stephen Jones heard feedback from students in a closed door meeting Friday that focused on a new grading policy he recently put into effect.

The controversial new system rounds up all failing scores to a 61. WAVY.com was not allowed into the meeting, but we spoke with the number one ranked student at Norview High School, who is part of the Superintendent's Students Cabinet, and was in the meeting.

"I was livid about it," said 16-year-old Samantha Jerue.

Jerue is an 11th grader at Norview High School and has never received anything but A's. She thinks the Superintendent's policy is flawed. "I see it in school. [Students] come in, doodle, take a nap, take a test, get one question right, then get rounded up to a 61...you take that 61 do well on a couple of other tests and you get a D, which is passing," she said.

Jerue said the meeting was very positive and that the Superintendent was "extremely receptive." Jerue said Dr. Jones had someone taking notes so he could engage the students for their opinions. "He really cared about what we thought...he said, 'I'm here to be convinced what you believe is true, and we will take what you say and take it back and look at it and see if there's something different we should do,'" Jerue added.

Dr. Jones would not meet with WAVY.com about the meeting, but told us back in September, "We are trying to do everything we can to make sure the kids are successful and we want to be fair...this is to be a lifeline and not a crutch." That may have been the intent, but the policy has failed in the court of public opinion: parents, teachers, city council members, students. Jones insists he vetted the plan with many people, but many people have lots of problems with it.

In the end the students gave Dr. Jones a policy change he may very well implement, "The 61 plan I may now agree with, but not unlimited. Maybe one or two rounded up grades, and then the rest of the F's are given the actual test score...give them lifelines, but maybe not an unlimited lifeline," Jerue said.

Dr. Jones claims he spent two years vetting this policy, and yet so many argue it is flawed. He met with the student group last year, but the "F" plan never came up.