Locally Approved Courses

According to 70 O.S. § 11-103.6, school districts can propose math- and science-based application courses for high school.

The steps to propose a locally approved course follow.

To propose a locally approved math or science course, school districts should first consult the most recent list of approved course/subject codes from the Oklahoma State Department of Education's Accreditation Office under the Document and  Subject Code headings. This is to verify that a proposed course does not already exist.

Next, school districts may develop their own course name and description. The locally approved course must be aligned to the Oklahoma Academic Standards for Mathematics or Science.

• It is the responsibility of the school district to consider the course in relation to college enrollment requirements and career tech enrollment requirements. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education has a form for schools to get approval for college admission requirements for a locally designed course.

The course must be presented to the district's school board for approval. The title, description, Oklahoma Academic Standards, and approval status for college admission should be included in the proposal.

If the school board approves the course, the district may update their course catalog and enroll students in the course for the upcoming year. A district representative must complete this form  to notify the OSDE of the locally approved course for the upcoming school year.

Excerpts from the state statute regarding locally-approved math and science courses follow with emphasis added.

E. A school district shall determine the specific description of the locally approved math and science based application courses allowed pursuant to paragraphs 2 and 3 of subsection D of this section. Formal notification with the specific course description shall be provided to the State Department of Education prior to July 1 of each school year. The notification shall include what courses will be coded as locally approved math and science based application courses for the ensuing school year.

G. For purposes of this section: "Locally approved" means approved by the local school district board of education.

To see the full statute that includes all the requirements for high school graduation, visit the Oklahoma Statutes page.