Santa Barbara Unified Eliminates Fs from Student Grades

Students in the Santa Barbara Unified School District can no longer receive an F on their transcripts.

The new grading policy was approved Tuesday night as a way to level the playing field for students struggling with distance learning throughout the pandemic. This was the second version of the policy, which came after backlash from the board and the public about also removing Ds from student transcripts.

“Thank you for the recalibration from a week ago; we landed on the right policy,” Boardmember Laura Capps said. “Those who are suffering the most already, who are the most marginalized, are going to have the deepest impacts. And you see that in grading…. It’s with a heavy heart that I support this policy because it reflects how severe, how devastating, and how deep the impact of this pandemic is on so many lives.”