• Are districts required to include joint vocational school districts in the process of developing policies for the honors diplomas?
• Are districts responsible for communicating with parents and students about the option to earn an honors diploma?
• Can a single course fulfill multiple requirements?
• Will the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce provide districts with materials to recognize students who have obtained honors diplomas?
• Can a student use weighted GPAs to fulfill the GPA requirement?
• Can courses taken in middle school fulfill the fine arts requirement?
• Do “exploratory” and “culture-based” courses count toward the world languages requirement?
• Do financial literacy courses count toward the social studies requirement?
• Should world languages courses be sequential?
• What are the specific requirements for math units?
• What are the specific requirements for science units?

• What accommodations are available to English learners and students with disabilities on the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Tests?
• Do Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate test scores earned in another district, state or country satisfy the requirements for the seal?

• How will honors diplomas affect district report cards?

Yes. Districts must include joint vocational school districts in the development of policies, guidelines and procedures for the honors diploma. At least annually, joint vocational school districts also must update districts on the status of students enrolled at their schools with respect to the honors diplomas. (Ohio Administrative Code Rule 3301-16-02(G))

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Yes. Districts must communicate to parents and students about the option to earn an honors diploma and the criteria required for students to earn each of the six honors diplomas. (Ohio Administrative Code Rule 3301-16-02(D)) School districts cannot require students to apply for or declare their intent to earn honors diplomas. (Ohio Administrative Code Rule 3301-16-02(C))

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Yes. A single course can meet multiple criteria if it addresses the standards of the relevant subject areas.  Learn more about integrated coursework and awarding simultaneous credit.

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Local school district boards of education determine how to issue these students’ honors diplomas. The honors diploma bears the date of its issue and contain the signatures of the president and treasurer of the district board of education, superintendent of schools and principal of the high school.

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GPAs must be calculated on a 4.0 scale.

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Courses taken in middle school may meet the general graduation requirement of two semesters of fine arts, but a course must count for high school credit (be high school-level work or above) to count for the honors diploma. Dance, drama/theatre, music and visual art courses all count as fine arts courses.

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No. Units from language courses coded as “Foreign Language Exploratory” do not count toward the honors diploma requirement. Units from culture-based courses do not count toward the honors diploma requirements.

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If a district counts financial literacy as a social studies course, students can use it as an elective to meet the requirement. If the district counts financial literacy as a family consumer science or business education elective, it does not count.

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Yes. Only credits from world languages courses that are sequential and proficiency based (for example, Spanish levels I, II, III or German I and II and French I and II) should fulfill the honors diploma requirement. Sequential classical (for example, Latin, Ancient Greek) and visual (for example, American Sign Language) languages DO fulfill the honors diploma requirement.

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Students must take algebra I, geometry, algebra II (or equivalent), and one other higher-level course OR a four-course sequence that contains equivalent or higher content. Students can meet the math criterion for the STEM Honors Diploma through successful completion of coursework that contains content equivalent to five units.

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Students must earn credit in physical science, life science and in an advanced science. Advanced science refers to courses that are inquiry based with laboratory experiences. They must align with Ohio’s Learning Standards for Science in grades 11-12, an Advanced Placement science course or entry-level college course (clearly preparing students for a college freshman-level science class, such as anatomy, botany or astronomy). Students can meet the science criterion for the STEM Honors Diploma through successful completion of coursework that contains content equivalent to five units, with two of the five units being in advanced science.

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The Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests are not Ohio’s State Tests; therefore, the features and accommodations in Ohio’s Accessibility Manual do not apply. Refer to the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests resources for resources for additional information:

• Advanced Placement Tests Accommodations;
• International Baccalaureate Accommodations .

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Yes. Official test scores for Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests will satisfy the requirements if they meet the proficiency requirements of the seal. 

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To learn more about how honors diplomas impact the College, Career, Workforce, and Military Readiness (CCWMR) metric on the Report Card, please visit the Traditional Report Cards webpage on our website.

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