During a Los Gatos­Saratoga Joint Union High School District board meeting Feb. 2, Saratoga's new interim principal, Harry Bettencourt, cleared up some "misinformation and misunderstandings" floating around the school campus and parent community. Proposed new changes at the school--which could affect everything from valedictorians to student transcripts--were reported in the school newspaper and rumored on campus.

But the recent meeting was the first time the issues were officially brought to light. There were more than 75 people--a mix of parents, students and community members--in attendance.

During a Jan. 18 dialogue among members of the Saratoga High faculty, Bettencourt said the staff brought forward to the school administration three areas they saw as concerns: open access to students for honors and advanced placement classes, reporting of weighted grade point averages, and eliminating the use of pluses and minuses in calculating high school GPAs.

"There was overwhelming support by faculty on movement in these areas," Bettencourt said.

During a public comment period on this issue, Saratoga parent Anandi Krishnamurthy questioned why these new proposed changes had received such "high priority" and could be implemented with such haste.

Bettencourt said three departments--English, social studies and science--are considering offering open access to students in honors and AP classes. The science department is hoping to have "recommendations or guidelines" for students who want to take classes, rather than prerequisites. There is an appeals process for students who aren't accepted into a requested honors or AP class.

"Any student who meets the recommendations will be able to enroll in an honors or AP class in these three departments," Bettencourt said. "If they want to give it a try, we're going to go ahead and encourage them."

Board members Phil Nielsen and Rosemary Rossi spoke in favor of open access for students.

While colleges and universities have their own set of standards in deriving GPAs for students, Bettencourt said school officials are also considering changing official transcripts to include two GPAs--one to reflect weighted grades in honors and AP classes, the other for the school's internal purposes only. The second, said Bettencourt, would not include weighted courses or calculate pluses and minuses, nor would it affect the college admissions process. A 4.0 would be the highest possible GPA, allowing for many students to be ranked first in the class.

"These proposed changes recommended by the administration are on a pilot basis," stressed Bettencourt, adding they would be evaluated for effectiveness over one year.

Bettencourt said the proposed changes came about because stress related to grades has been identified as the school's No. 1 challenge. By allowing more students to earn a 4.0, he said it might relieve some of that stress. He added it came about because teachers couldn't identify a reason behind having pluses and minuses.

"It doesn't seem to me that this will encourage students to do things to reduce stress," said student board representative Albert Chiang. "I hope there will be more dialogue between the administration and staff with the student and parent community. What I've heard is the students felt really left out of it."

District Superintendent Cynthia Ranii said they are still trying to determine how to pilot the program and whether it would affect all classes or if it would start with incoming freshmen. She said the changes are "still in the planning stages," and further clarification will be necessary.

"The changes were initiated by the staff, and I give credence to their opinion," said Rossi. Other school board members also spoke in high regard of Saratoga's teachers.

Nearly 20 parents and students in the audience spoke during the public comment session in disagreement with the proposed policy decisions. Through various analogies, they addressed how the changes could devalue the valedictorian title and how implementing this program wouldn't necessarily reduce stress.

Saratoga student Anthony Chong spoke about his concerns with the school not having enough teachers to instruct honors and AP classes, should they become open access. Other students said acknowledging competition and pressure in high school helps to better prepare them for college and life after college.

"If you diminish the stress now, how will it prepare the students for college?" questioned Wendy Shieu, a senior who wouldn't be affected by the changes.

While the audience wasn't reflective of all students and parents, Bettencourt assured those in attendance there will be an upcoming general meeting for parents and subject-area specific meetings for students to discuss concerns with administrators. Ranii said Bettencourt and his faculty will be reflecting, discussing and collaborating with all stakeholders. A letter from Bettencourt was mailed to parents after the meeting detailing the proposed changes.

For more information, call the school at 408.867.3411 or visit www.saratogahigh.org.

Saratoga High School recently went through a Western Association of Schools and Colleges accreditation follow-up process. WASC accreditation is a form of accountability designed to serve the community involved with higher education, from prospective and current students to parents, teachers, administrators and the general public. Accreditation certifies a school has established standards and is achieving its objectives, while also encouraging self-study and periodic review.

During the follow-up process, three goals were identified: to improve the effectiveness of the learning environment for all students, to improve student-teacher relationships and to reduce student stress. These goals were separate from proposed changes made by the Saratoga High staff on Jan. 18.

Recommendations were made by a WASC follow-up committee and the school's previous interim principal, Bill Richter, as to areas where the school needs improvement. Those recommendations include: implementing an alternative school schedule for the 2005­06 school year, examining the development of a homework policy and guidelines and improving staff development. Working groups involving all stakeholders will be formed to address how to implement improvement in these areas. A report will be made in the spring about their progress, according to the school's new interim principal Harry Bettencourt .