In prior years at BV West and other Blue Valley high schools, the Superintendent’s Top 10 was a recognition that was given to students at class day and graduation. It was given to ten seniors based on weighted and non-weighted grading. However, this year it is changing to a new system.

The Class of 2018 will be honored through a new Latin-based system of recognition. There is no set number of students who will be recognized, it depends on how many students meet the threshold by the end of the seventh semester.

“I think students will be happy with this. The students by in large who work to earn these high academic honors want to be recognized for their work,” Assistant Principal Katie Bonnema said.

However, seniors who are in the Magna Cum Laude group may have a chance to move up by the end of their eighth semester.

“If a student has a 4.49 GPA by the end of the first semester senior year, but their eighth semester would put them in that top category, we are going to work out a system where the students could move from Magma Cum Laude to Summa Cum Laude,” Bonnema said. “We are not going to look for moving down or looking at the movement of any other level [at the end of the seventh semester).”

The levels are:

• Summa Cum Laude: Cumulative GPA of 4.500 or higher (calculated at the end of the eight semesters)

• Magna Cum Laude: Cumulative GPA of 4.300 or higher (at the end of the seven semesters)

• Cum Laude: Cumulative GPA of  4.000 or higher (at the end of the seven semesters)