Thoughtful preregistration eliminates many problems for the student and the school when the year begins. Exceptions may be approved by administrators; however, it is very difficult to change courses after the master schedule is made. Be sure to give considerable thought to your course selection. Adding a new course can only be done in the first 3 days of the semester. 

Guidelines for Valley and Valley Southwoods

• Students may drop a class during the first 10 days of the semester and the course will be removed from their schedule. 
• If a student drops a class on day 11 through day 45 of the semester,  a “W” for withdrawal will appear on the student’s permanent transcript.
• After first-quarter or third-quarter, the student may elect to drop a class and receive a failing grade for the course. 

Students will have the opportunity of choosing one Pass/No Pass per semester, providing it is not a required course for graduation, a required course within Honors or Scholars of Distinction, or offered for DMACC credit. No course that meets a graduation requirement can be taken Pass/No Pass until that graduation requirement is completed (except otherwise indicated on a student’s IEP). Credit may be earned on a Pass/No Pass basis. Students will be expected to obtain a parent's signature for approval plus the signatures of their counselor and instructor to indicate their awareness of the student's intentions.

The Pass/No Pass decision must be made prior to the end of the first nine weeks of any semester and prior to the end of the seventh day of class for all summer school courses. In addition to the strict Pass/No Pass option, students can elect to remain on a grade basis if the earned grade for the semester is:

• A
• B or better
• C or better

Students electing to take a class Pass/No Pass need to be aware that the class will not count toward the 5.5 credits needed to meet the criteria for Academic Letter awards.

To qualify for a physical education waiver due to an academic schedule of eight credits/periods, the schedule must be either:

1. core driven (no more than two electives), or
2. reflective of core classes for grade-level and graduation, and electives that demonstrate the student’s deep interest and past participation. Examples: 3-4 music courses (vocal and instrumental) or 3-4 technology-based electives. The student cannot randomly take 3-4 electives that do not support a pattern of past interest of collaborative content.

The eight-credit/period schedule is not an option just to get out of physical education. Final decision and approval/denial for the eight-credit/period schedule is made by the building principal.