INDIANAPOLIS — The State Board of Education on Wednesday approved new high school diploma requirements following months of revisions and thousands of public comments.
The final version, unanimously approved by board members, did not include significant changes from the second draft presented in August.
It includes a single base diploma for all students that will require a minimum of 42 credits, up from 40.
Currently, Indiana has four diploma types: General, Core 40, Academic Honors and Technical Honors.
The new diploma requirements are similar to those of the Core 40. However, they require fewer specific courses in each subject area in order to afford flexibility to students in personalizing their coursework, according to state education officials.
In lieu of honors diplomas, students will instead have the option to earn readiness seals. The endorsements provide more specific requirements meant to show a student satisfies college enrollment requirements or shows their preparedness to enter the workforce or enlist in the armed services.
The three types of seals will be offered in two tiers, Honors and Honors Plus.
Students who graduate high school early will be required to earn a readiness seal.
The new diploma requirements will go into effect for students in the class of 2029, currently in eighth grade. School districts will be allowed to opt into awarding the new diploma starting next school year.
"This was really hard, messy and sometimes unpopular work, but where it landed is a really ... good place for kids," said state board member B.J. Watts.
The Indiana Department of Education first began its efforts to overhaul high school diploma requirements last April, initially proposing two base diplomas that emphasized work-based learning, and would have required students to take part in experiences in and out of school to meet various skill competency requisites
Parents, educators and political figures expressed frustration over the attainability and rigor of the proposed diplomas, and concerns that some school districts and communities would not have the capacity for an influx of students seeking apprenticeships and internships.
In total, over 8,000 public comments were submitted following the first draft, according to IDOE.
Additionally, several of the state’s colleges and universities have raised concerns over the proposed diplomas not meeting their admissions requirements.
State education officials later scrapped the two-diploma proposal in its second draft and shifted the work-based learning experience and skill competency requirements into the readiness seals.
The approved diploma has gotten the backing of the state’s public higher education institutions, professional education organizations, business groups and corporations.
"This is more than a new high school diploma, it is truly the redesign of high school," said Bluffton High School principal Steve Baker, speaking on behalf of the Indiana Association of School Principals.
With the new diploma requirements approved, Indiana Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said IDOE would work over the next year on several measures to implement the new diploma, including updating eligible courses for each subject area, developing comprehensive work-based learning guidance, building an interactive advising tool to assist guidance counselors in planning and tracking students’ graduation plans, and providing greater flexibility on who can teach high school and college-level courses.
In addition, Jenner told reporters on Tuesday that IDOE would be working with the Indiana General Assembly in the upcoming legislative session to tie the new diploma requirements and readiness seals into the state’s school funding formula.
House Enrolled Act 1002, passed by state legislators in 2023, mandated the new diploma requirement be adopted by the end of this year.
The new diploma requirements will still need to be signed off by the Indiana attorney general and the governor.