Frequently Asked Questions

Neither the Math Dept nor the School Counselor recommend that any student skip math classes. It is strongly encouraged that all students follow the math sequence. Listen to and take seriously your math teacher’s recommendation.

If you are a current student considering skipping math levels, students are required to meet with their math teacher and complete a “waiver form." If you are an incoming 9th grader, we will discuss this at Course Selection Night.

If a student chooses to skip a math level because they are planning to self study or even take a course during the summer and does not, or if the student struggles once the course begins, it is extremely unlikely that the student will be able to choose another math class.

Students are more than welcome to take courses outside of HHS over the summer; however, school counselors recommend that prior to enrollment, students and their families consider the following:

• Is the outside educational institution UC/CSU accredited?
• Many students who attend summer programs for math, science etc. can be dynamic, enriching learning experiences. However, unless they are accredited high school academic programs, with pre-approval from us, via the 'Request for Credit from Outside Educational Institution,' they cannot be used in the place of required classes or to skip levels of classes.

You cannot earn credit for a class that you have already taken and are trying to replace a grade; all grades that have been earned will remain on the transcript.

The School Counselors will be happy to meet with you or your student after they begin the first day of high school. We will assist you with your student's 9th grade schedule in a step-by-step method during the 8th Grade Course Selection Nights in March. We also strongly encourage incoming 9th graders to attend HOP (Homestead Orientation Program) and parents to attend POP (Parents Orientation Program) to become more familiar with the Homestead community and resources.

Concurrent enrollment is an opportunity for current high school students to also take courses at a community college. All current high school students who wish to be concurrently enrolled at a community college need to get the high school permission form signed by their school counselor before they are allowed to register for any course. Each community college has its own form and process for registering for classes so please make sure you read all instructions!

Age restrictions: You will need to check the requirements of the community college for all concurrent enrollment age requirements.

For more information about Concurrent Enrollment, please visit the Enrichment Options webpage.

Community college courses that are taken currently are not placed on Homestead’s transcript unless the student is credit deficient. Please note that, community college classes must and should be reported on the student’s college application because it will often be factored into a student’s college GPA.

Students who are interested in taking courses outside of HHS for personal growth, enrichment, or for fun are more than welcome to do so; however, many of these courses do NOT transfer to the HHS transcript.

Students should convert every letter grade they have received to grade points. A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F=0.

For honors and AP classes, you should give yourself one additional point for every semester of an honors or AP class that you have completed with C or better grade. You would then add up all the grade points and divide by the number of classes taken. When calculating academic GPA use only the courses that are on the approved course list. View the list on the Cal State website.

UC’s and CSU’s will use all academic courses in 10^th and 11^th grade. View the list of courses on the University of California website. Ninth grade marks will be viewed but not used for calculating GPA. They will only take a maximum of 8 semesters of honors and AP weighted work in the 10^th and 11^th grade. This does not mean they do not value more than 8 semesters, they just cap the weighted GPA at that point. Private and out of state school’s vary on what GPA they use for evaluating purposes. Students are encouraged to do their research when it comes to questions on private and out of state universities.

It is not recommended that a student take a level of a language at the CC and expect to move on to a higher level at Homestead the following year.

The curriculum at the community college is NOT comparable to a full year of instruction at the high school level.

Taking courses at the community colleges is optional and should be done with careful consideration.

Most language courses at the CC will be counted toward fulfilling college eligibility requirements.

If you are considering taking a language course at a community college, the guidance department recommends that you speak with your high school language instructor first.