When Catasauqua high school and middle school students return to classes Aug. 26, they will notice a shift in the academic grade scale.

The Catasauqua School Board voted Aug. 6 to alter the grading scale for these students.

The new scale creates parity with other area school districts.

Beginning Aug. 26, an A is 90-100, B 80-89, C 70-79, D 60-69 and an F is 59 and below.

The previous scale ranked an A 100-93, B 92-85, C 84-77, D 76-70 and an F 69 to 50.

School board President Penny Hahn expressed concern with the new scale.

"I'm not too excited about it," she said. "It's kind of a relaxed grading scale from what we are used to."

Board member Christine Naegel asked how the new system will affect current honor roll students.

"This won't really affect the honor society at all," CHS Principal David Ascani said.

Ascani said he first wants the board to consider and vote on the new grading scale before any adjustments might be made to the standards for the honor roll.

Currently at CHS, students may qualify for distinguished honor roll and honor roll, in addition to the National Honor Society (NHS). Honor roll status requires a student to achieve a 90 percent and distinguished honor roll requires a 93 percent average.

Ascani pointed out many schools, unlike CHS, take a student's grade point average to determine honor roll status. At CHS, a student with a C in any subject, although they achieved the percentage required for honor roll, will not be granted the academic distinction.

"It's the goal ... it's what you're supposed to meet," Naegel responded.

Ascani indicated the CHS honor roll requirements are more stringent than NHS requirements.

Hahn said she would like to see the requirements for honor roll remain the same.

Although CHS requirements for honor roll are more rigorous than what NHS requires, CASD Superintendent Robert Spengler said CHS continues to produce a number of distinguished honor roll and honor roll students.

"We have pretty many kids who achieve distinguished," Spengler said. "I'm pretty impressed by the numbers."