The new minimum graduation requirements officially begin with the freshman class of 2008 (graduating class of 2012). A change in the arts and humanity graduation requirement enables students to specialize in one or more art forms at the high school level. Students will be able to take typical elective music classes (band, orchestra, choir, etc.) through four years high school and the credit from one year can be used to fulfill the graduation requirement.

The regulation requires that any course that fulfills the graduation requirement must be “standards based.” Kentucky’s minimum standards are spelled out in the Program of Studies, so any course that is used to fulfill the arts and humanities graduation requirement must be aligned to the Program of Studies accordingly. Music courses must be aligned to the music portion of the Program of Studies.

This will require that those typical elective courses follow an instructional program that includes the instructional categories of Structures in the arts, Humanity in the Arts, Purposes for Creating the Arts, Processes in the Arts (creating, performing, responding), and Interrelationships Among the Arts as outlined in the Program of Studies.

KMEA in partnership with KDE has prepared an example course alignment document and has posted the example on the KMEA web site for use by high schools across the state. (See link above.)

For further details you may contact—
Phil Shepherd, KDE Arts Specialist philip.shepherd@education.ky.gov or Pam Fleitz, COMEK Chair pam.fleitz@jefferson.kyschools.us

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*This document could also be used by those schools that are not allowing arts specialization but would like to embed the material into their performing arts classes in order to exempt students from the Arts and Humanities class.